Assuming responsibility
by Aggie Deneys
Summary: The past catches up with Bart Allen/Kid Flash and leaves him with an unexpected surprise. Bart must make a very hard decision.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Prologue

"I'll get it, Jay," Joan Garrick called to her husband, wiping her hands on a kitchen towel. She walked to the front door and opened it. An unfamiliar woman stood on the porch. Joan smiled and mentally prepared herself for a sales pitch of some sort. "May I help you?"

"Are you Mrs. Joan Garrick?"

"Yes, that's me." Salespeople typically didn't know whose door on which they were knocking. Joan felt the first tinge of unease. Instinct told her bad news was coming. Thankfully, Jay was at home, so whatever the news, it didn't concern her husband. However, their extended family was large. Yet, their extended family was mostly in the hero business. If something bad had happened, Jay would have been notified. Besides, on closer inspection, the woman didn't look like a police officer. She wasn't dressed in a uniform. Nor did she feel like a detective.

"My name is Ellen Taylor. I'm a social worker from the California Department of Social Services. According to our records, you were guardians of the late Bart Allen?"

The questions tumbled through her mind. What was a social worker from California doing in Keystone City, Kansas? What did this have to do with Bart? Since his return, his identity had been kept from the public. "Please, come in. If this is regarding Bart, I think my husband Jay should hear whatever you have to say." Joan opened the door and showed the woman to the living room. As she hurried to the kitchen, she said a silent prayer of thanks that neither Bart nor Max was currently at the house. While Max's presence could be easily explained, Bart's would have been much more difficult.

Jay Garrick, aka the Flash, looked up from doing the newspaper's crossword puzzle. He immediately sensed his wife's discomfort. "Joan? What's wrong?"

"There's a social worker here. It's something to do with Bart." Joan saw the worry immediately appear on her husband's face. Bart's history was about as convoluted as they came. Born in the 30th century, the grandson of Barry Allen, the cousin of Wally West, his past just raised many questions, too many questions with no easy answers. As a result, with the help of Oracle, Bart had gotten a new life in the 21st century. But then he had aged four years in a matter of days. Once again, Oracle had rewritten Bart's history. Then he had died. Then he had come back. At the rate Bart was going, he would be getting a new life history every few years.

Joan and Jay rejoined the social worker in the living room. They listened in shock to the social worker's story. Had they been asked to guess what a social worker would want to see them about, they would have guessed maybe some unfinished paperwork related to Bart's time at the police academy or some unpaid bill that had suddenly surfaced. They never would have guessed the real reason behind the social worker's visit.

"You can see our dilemma," the social worker concluded. "We know you aren't blood relatives, but given that you were Bart's guardians at one time, and the fact his paperwork from the Los Angeles Police Academy listed you as emergency contacts, we thought you should be made aware of the situation."

"Yes, thank you," Joan said. Shock didn't begin to describe how she felt. She glanced at her husband. He also seemed to be at a loss for words. "How long do we have to decide?"

"The sooner, the better. I know I've hit you with news you never expected to hear. It's a lot to process. However, the sooner we can move forward, the better."

"We understand," Jay answered. "We'll let you know in a few days."

The social worker smiled. "That would be great. Here's my card. I go back to California this afternoon. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call me day or night."

When the woman had left, Joan looked her husband. "What do we do? Bart needs to know."

"I agree. He does. But first, I think I need to talk to the others. This is going to get complicated."


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Bart Allen, aka Kid Flash, laughed as he beat Conner Kent, aka Superboy, for the third time in a row. He hadn't been dead long. A handful of months. However, during those months, several new video games had been released. Better yet, the game systems had been improved. Unfortunately, the game systems still couldn't handle his or Kon's speed. Then again, no system would ever handle his speed. He had learned to tolerate it. "That's three times! Care to make it four?"

Kon glared at him. "Start it up," he growled.

Bart smiled as he reset the game. Being alive again was great and weird. It was strange to see how much had changed over those few months. He knew it was even worse for Kon since his friend had been dead even longer. However, what made it difficult was that from his perspective – and Kon's – time hadn't passed. It was hard to get used to the changes that had occurred. The most obvious change was that he was once again a teenager. He was again Kid Flash. Not that he missed being the Flash. He was more than happy to be Kid Flash again. The short time he had been the Flash had shown him was he wasn't ready for that level of responsibility. He didn't want it, at least not yet.

Then there was Barry and Max returning. Meeting his grandpa for the first time was incredible, but it paled in comparison to seeing Max again. Nothing could rightly describe the joy he had felt when Max had appeared. It was as if all the pieces of his life were coming together.

And then there were all the changes within the Teen Titans that had occurred. Tim leaving and becoming Red Robin, Cassie becoming leader, new faces and new names to learn. He wished Tim were still part of the Titans. Bart knew that feeling was shared by Kon. Perhaps between the two of them, they could somehow convince Tim to come back.

Of his friends, Tim had changed the most and it wasn't necessarily in a good way. They had always worried Tim would turn into Bruce – distant, cold and seemingly uncaring. It seemed as if their fears were starting to become reality. Strangely, Bruce's reappearance hadn't seemed to make much of a difference to Tim. Tim was still keeping his distance – both physically and emotionally.

As the game restarted, Bart pushed the thoughts from his mind and concentrated on beating Kon for the fourth time. They were halfway through the game, Bart once again winning, when Cassie Sandsmark, aka Wonder Girl, interrupted. "Bart, you have some visitors."

"Yeah, in a sec, okay?" he answered, his attention never wavering from the game.

"Bart." A hint of warning had crept into her voice. Bart ignored it.

"Look, Cass, we'll be done in like two minutes," Kon said, his gaze fixed on the television screen.

Cassie stomped to the television and turned it off. "You. Have. Visitors."

Bart and Kon turned around to see who was so important that they couldn't wait two minutes. "Yeah, you have visitors," Kon agreed softly.

Bart felt a tingle of apprehension, but then realized he hadn't done anything to be worried about. Yet, seeing Jay, Barry, Wally and Max standing in the doorway, in costume, with no smiles on their faces, made him review everything he had done and try to figure out what could be so bad that it took four of them to ream him out. Nothing came to mind. "Hey," he greeted weakly. "Did I miss a speedster meeting or something?"

The comment didn't cause any reaction. No smile from his grandpa or Wally. No eye rolling from Max. His worry grew. "Bart, we need to talk to you," Jay said.

"Okay." What could be so important that it required four speedsters? He almost asked if grandma was okay, but then realized that his grandpa and Wally would look a lot more frazzled if anything had happened to her.

"Let's go to the roof," Wally suggested.

On the roof, Bart was surprised to see his grandma. His worry factor increased. Four speedsters and his grandma. Whatever news they had to tell him, it wasn't good. His mind raced to find a possible reason. Thawne? As far as Bart knew, he was locked up at Iron Heights. Inertia? Dead, but then he and Kon and countless others had come back to life. He guessed the same could be true of Inertia. Man, he really hoped it wasn't that. The thought of facing his twisted clone again made him shiver.

As his mind analyzed the possibilities, his grandpa, Wally and Max pulled back their cowls. Yet, another move to consider. Were they trying to make this less formal? More relaxed?

"Hi, sweetie," Iris greeted with a smile and hug.

"Hi, Grandma. What's going on?"

The five adults glanced at each other. Bart waited. Finally, Jay stepped forward. "Bart, this morning Joan and I had a visit from a social worker for the California Department of Social Services."

Tim had assured him that his paperwork was in order. Since he was again a minor at seventeen, Jay and Joan were again listed as his guardians. If Max had been back when he had returned, Bart knew that honor would have probably fallen to Max. Returning to life had resulted in his entire history being rewritten…again. New social security number, new school records, new birth certificate, everything. It was frustrating, but necessary. "Why? I thought everything was okay."

"It is." Jay took a deep breath. "This is from before you died."

Bart frowned. "What?"

"Bart, honey, you remember Valerie, right?" Iris asked.

"Yeah." Valerie Perez. His former girlfriend. At the end, he had thought that he had loved her. Maybe he had, maybe he hadn't. It didn't really matter. He had died. Since returning, he had thought about looking her up, seeing how she was, but what good would that do? It would only raise questions. Besides, he doubted she would be thrilled to learn that the guy she had dated was four years younger. From the start, Valerie had been aware of his unusual aging. Bart knew it had bothered her, at least a little bit.

"Valerie died about two months ago, a couple weeks before the crisis," Iris continued.

A pang of sadness filled him. "How?"

"Some medical complications."

Bart had many more questions to ask, but doubted either his grandma or Jay would know the answers. Besides, only one question seemed important. "So, why does a social worker care? I mean, sure Val and I dated for a bit, but then I died and, well…" He shrugged. Bart watched as the adults exchanged uneasy looks. Okay, they had arrived at the reason for this impromptu visit.

Jay cleared his throat. "The social worker didn't come to see us about you directly. Instead, since we had been your guardians and since you had listed us as your emergency contacts when you were at the police academy, the social worker thought we should know that…" Jay trailed off and looked uneasy.

Bart felt his worry increase. He had never known Jay to be at a loss for words. Whatever was coming was bad, very bad.

"Bart," Iris began, "Valerie died from medical complications due to child birth. She had a baby girl. Before she died, she said you were the father."

What? Something must be wrong with his hearing, because there was no way his grandma had just said he was a…father? No. No way. He shook his head. "There must be some mistake."

"You're saying there's no way the baby could be yours?" Max asked.

Bart blushed deeply. This was definitely a conversation he didn't want to have with any of them. Maybe Wally, but even then… "No, I mean, I guess it could be." This was too much information too fast, which was something to be said for a speedster. "But why tell you?"

"The baby was born only a couple weeks before the crisis. Valerie died the next day. The hospital and state were going through the necessary paperwork to identify any next of kin before putting the baby into foster care and up for adoption. Then the crisis hit. The baby survived the crisis. The state is finally getting through the files again. The social worker that was assigned thought Joan and I should be notified. She couldn't locate any family for Valerie."

He continued to try to process everything being said. "You said it was a girl?"

Iris smiled. "Yes, and when you hear the name, any doubts you may still have will be gone. Valerie named the baby Melanie Dawn."

The name hit him hard. Melanie, after his own mother Meloni. Dawn, after the aunt he had never known, his father's twin sister. Valerie had known those details about his life. "I'm a dad." Those words seemed wrong and yet right at the same time.

Wally grinned and put his arm around his uncle's shoulders. "Which means old Barry here is a great-"

"Don't say it," Barry warned Wally with a smile.

Bart ignored them. "So, where is she now?"

"She's staying with a foster family in the Los Angeles area."

"So, what do I need to do? When can I see her?"

"That's where the complications come," Max stated.

"Because I'm supposed to be dead. But-"

"Bart, we need to figure out how to handle this. You being alive is one thing. You being seventeen again is another," Barry said.

It made sense, but he didn't like it. "So, what do we do? I want to see her." He almost said he "needed" to see her.

"The social worker hinted that since Joan and I were your guardians, we could argue we were family and push to gain full custody. Our ages wouldn't be in our favor, but the social worker didn't seem too concerned about that point."

"Or Linda and I can try to adopt her," Wally noted. "Whether us or Jay and Joan, if we run into any legal obstacles, I know Dick will give us access to the Wayne Enterprises lawyers."

"In the meantime, the social worker said Joan and I could fill in as foster parents until the legal system decides what may be appropriate."

All the pieces fell into place. They had obviously discussed the possibilities. They had arrived at potential options. Bart realized that they had never considered allowing him to take care of his daughter. None of these scenarios had included him gaining custody. He knew he shouldn't be surprised. He was a teenager. He was supposedly dead. But it didn't seem right. If this baby – Melanie – was truly his daughter, he should be part of her life. "When will…when will it all start?"

"Joan and I will call the social worker today yet. We'll get the paperwork moving to become foster parents."

They talked about logistics for a few more minutes. Bart tried to pay attention, but he was only able to focus on one topic. He was a dad. He had a baby girl. After they left, Bart stayed on the roof. He felt dazed. Everything seemed surreal.

"Hey." Bart turned to see Kon standing near the entrance to the roof. "Want some company?"

"Sure." Kon sat down next to him. "You heard?" Bart figured Kon had probably listened to the entire conversation.

Kon nodded. "It's great news."

"Yeah."

"Seems a little unreal, you know?"

"Yeah."

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know," Bart admitted.


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

It seemed unfair that Jay and Joan would be seeing his daughter before he did. Bart tried not to dwell on that fact. Instead, he tried to focus on the fact that he would be seeing his daughter in a few minutes, as soon as Jay and Joan arrived back from the airport.

Making the arrangements had occurred faster than expected. Perhaps Jay's status as the original Flash had helped matters. No matter, Bart didn't care. It had been four days of frantic activity. While Jay and Joan had focused on the paperwork, Bart and Max had focused on readying the Garrick house for a baby. Max was already staying with the Garricks. Since the baby would be with them, Bart was moving in as well. The house would be cramped.

Officially, Melanie had her own bedroom. Off the record, Bart would be sharing the room. Not only was the house cramped, the bedroom was filled to capacity as well. Linda had gone through the baby items she had kept from the twins. What the Wests couldn't supply had been purchased. He stood in their room and stared at the crib. He fingered one of the stuffed animals.

Even looking at the crib and all the baby paraphernalia, it didn't seem real. Sure, he and Valerie had had sex, but a baby? What were the odds? Val had said she was taking birth control pills. Bart had believed her. He still did. Just his luck to be one of the statistics that resulted in the pill being only 99 percent effective. But was it bad luck or good luck? He wanted to believe it was good.

From what he had learned, Val hadn't had an easy pregnancy. She had gotten preeclampsia, diabetes and high blood pressure. The pregnancy had quickly become high risk. Yet, Val had managed to carry the baby thirty-five weeks. While a bit small, the baby had been born healthy. Bart wondered if Valerie had seen the baby, touched her or held her.

"Are you ready for all this?"

Bart turned to see Max leaning in the doorway. "I guess. It's not like I have a choice."

Max frowned and stepped into the room. He put his arm around Bart's shoulders. "You do have a choice. No one will look at you any differently if you decide the baby should be put up for adoption."

"I will. She's my responsibility."

"Bart, sometimes being responsible means admitting you can't do something."

Of everyone, Max seemed the most hesitant about the situation. Bart was too scared to ask why. He didn't want to know. Bart was saved from having to reply by the front door opening. He raced down the stairs. Joan held the baby in her arms while Jay held the diaper bag. Joan smiled at him. "She fell asleep on the car ride to the house. Would you like to hold her?"

Suddenly nerves took over. This was his daughter. He stared at the small bundle in Joan's arms. Talking about it was one thing, but now he could actually see the baby. This was real. This wasn't a dream. She was so tiny. Ten weeks old. Max laid a hand on his shoulder. "Go get acquainted with your daughter."

Bart nodded. Joan gently transferred the sleeping baby from her arms to Bart's. Bart looked at his daughter. The slight jostling caused her to open her eyes. Melanie yawned. Bart was immediately hooked. "Hi, there, Melanie. I'm your dad." He held his finger so she could grasp it. She did. Bart smiled.

* * *

The rest of day one passed in a blur. The only one who seemed to be handling the adjustment fairly well was Melanie. Everyone else, in particular Bart, was on pins and needles. The slightest sound Melanie made sent the entire household running. Eventually, Joan just laughed at their antics and dragged Jay and Max out of the house to give Bart time alone with his daughter.

For his part, Bart couldn't stop staring at her. She was a miracle. He had helped make this baby. This baby was part of him. In all his daydreaming, he had never pictured what life would be like as a father. Now he was one. Val's genes seemed to be stronger than his own in the baby. Melanie had dark hair and an olive complexion. Her mouth was pure Val, but Bart could see himself in the shape of her eyes and nose. Her eye color was the typical blue all babies seemed to have. Whether she would Val's dark brown eyes or his golden eyes was still a mystery, one he wanted to find out.

That first night, Bart hardly slept. Every sound she made had him on edge. When he couldn't hear her, he worried as to whether she was still breathing, going so far as to stare at her chest to make sure it was still rising and falling. By morning, he was an overtired bag of nerves. "How're you holding up, sweetie?" Iris asked.

Bart ran a hand through his already disheveled hair. "Okay." He slumped into an empty chair, placing the baby monitor on the table.

Wally laughed. "Yeah, I remember those first nights. You jump at every little sound. Did you do the mirror trick?"

Bart frowned, his mind feeling sluggish from the lack of sleep. Mirror trick? "What are you talking about?"

Wally grinned. "You're so obsessed about whether or not they're breathing that you can't sleep, can't stop thinking about it. So you stare at their chests to see if they're moving, but you can't tell. So you grab a mirror, put it under their noses. If the mirror fogs up, all is well."

That would have been much easier than staring at Melanie's chest, trying to figure out if her chest was moving or if it was just his imagination.

"Did you sleep at all?" Wally asked.

"Maybe two hours," Bart admitted.

Joan tsked. "We told you to ask for help." She handed him a cup of coffee.

Bart poured sugar into the cup and stirred. "It's not that. It's just…" Bart didn't know how to explain it. He felt as if he had to prove that he could do this, not just to himself but to everyone. He decided to change the topic. "When's Grandpa coming?"

"He said he'd stop by around lunchtime, but you know Barry," Iris said with a smile.

To eliminate any doubts, it had been decided that Barry would run a paternity test. Bart didn't have any doubts. He knew in his heart that Melanie was his daughter. In addition to the paternity test, Barry was going to run a genetic test to see if the baby had the metagene. Given that Wally's kids and Bart had the gene, most likely the baby had it as well.

A small cry sounded from the baby monitor. With a tired sigh, Bart started to stand up. Iris put a hand on his shoulder. "You stay put. I'll get her. Maybe you can catch a couple hours of sleep before Barry arrives."

"But I-"

"Bart, you have a family. You are not in this alone." Iris smiled at him. "Don't act like your cousin over there. Don't be afraid to ask for help."

"Hey," Wally protested. When Iris sent him a pointed look, Wally smiled. "Fine, you're right. Listen to her, Bart."

Bart took their advice and took a nap. When he awoke, it was almost one o'clock. He felt a brief stir of panic. He had slept for almost four hours. He rushed downstairs to find everyone gathered in the kitchen. Jay and Max had returned from wherever they had went after Joan had kicked them out of the house. Wally and his grandma were still there. At the moment, his grandpa was holding Melanie. Bart paused and looked closely at the smile on his grandpa's face. Actually, everyone's face had a smile on it. Who would have thought a little baby could bring such happiness?

"Hi, Grandpa," he greeted. He knew Barry didn't especially like being called 'grandpa.' For that reason alone, Bart used the title.

Barry looked up. "Hi, Bart."

"Feel more rested?" Joan asked.

"Yeah, I guess I did need that nap." He looked at Melanie and smiled. "Is she okay?"

"She took a two hour nap this morning. She just finished her bottle," Iris stated.

"Have you tested her yet?"

"No, we were waiting for you. It's probably best if you hold her while I prick her heel," Barry said. "I think we'll be able to see how good her lungs are." Barry handed over the baby.

Bart sat down. Everyone watched as Barry rubbed a spot on Melanie's heel with a dab of alcohol. Then he readied the needle. "You set?"

Bart nodded. The cry, or rather blood curdling scream, came after a two second delay. Tears poured down her face. Bart felt his heart breaking in two. He – they – had caused her this pain. It wasn't right. He held her close and gently rocked her. "Shh, it's okay, Mel. Shh."

Barry kissed the top of her head. "Sorry, princess."

"How long?" Max asked.

"The paternity test will be a few days. The genetics test will take a bit longer," Barry answered.

While it seemed like hours, Melanie's cries subsided within a minute. She gave a huge yawn. Bart smiled at her. Even if the test showed that he wasn't the father, how could he ever give her up? Within a day, she had won him over. There was nothing he wouldn't do for her. Worse, he didn't know how he would ever be able to give her up. No matter the test results, he wanted to be her father, he wanted to take care of her. It was the one option no one had ever mentioned, but it was the one option foremost in his mind.

* * *

A couple days had passed. Max had called for a meeting amongst the speedsters. He had been watching Bart closely and what he saw worried him. He didn't worry about Bart's ability to care for the baby. Bart was proving himself more than capable, more than willing, to do whatever was required.

What worried him was the obvious attachment developing between Bart and the baby. Max had been against bringing the baby into the family in the first place. He knew once everyone met the baby, no one would want to give her up. Maybe he worried too much, but he had been around for too long. Nothing was ever easy. Nothing ever seemed to go quite as planned. In Max's mind, the Bart-baby situation seemed to have a higher than likely chance of proving Murphy's Law. The situation presented too many variables, too many things that could go wrong. While the Garricks had obtained custody, it was only temporary custody. There were no guarantees either the Garricks or the Wests would be able to gain full, permanent custody. There was a strong possibility the baby could end up with a family outside of the speedster clan. If that happened, Max knew Bart would be heartbroken. It was the last thing Max wanted to see. If there was anything he could do to spare Bart that pain, he would. "He's getting attached," Max stated.

"We all are," Jay noted.

Max silently agreed. Even he had fallen under the little girl's charms. Maybe that was another reason why he was worried. He knew how hard it would be for him to watch her go. If it were bad for him, it would be even worse for Bart.

"This was a bad idea," continued Max. He still felt responsible for Bart. He wanted to do whatever was necessary to protect the boy. He wished he had been around to see the transformation from Impulse to Kid Flash. Jay had related stories of Bart both as Kid Flash and the Flash. The pride had been readily apparent in Jay's voice. Those stories had reminded Max of how much Bart had changed, how much Bart had matured, how much Max had missed.

"He had the right to know he was a father," countered Jay.

"And it was natural for him to want to meet her," Wally added. "I'd be more suspicious if he didn't want to meet her."

"I agree. He needed to know. But he didn't have to meet her. None of us did. We could have made up a story that she was already adopted."

Barry slid into the booth next to his nephew. "Sorry, I'm late. Did I miss anything?"

"Max doesn't believe Bart should have met Melanie," Wally replied.

Barry frowned. "That doesn't seem right. He-"

"He's not going to give up her." Max took a sip of his coffee and watched the reactions of the others. What he saw didn't surprise him. Brief glimpses of pain appeared on all their faces at the thought of having to give up the baby.

"He won't have to give her up. He knows that Linda and I or Jay and Joan can adopt her," Wally noted.

Max shook his head. "There are no guarantees that would happen. Besides, even if you did adopt her, we'd still have a problem. I know Bart. He's not going to want to give her up to anyone. He's going to try to keep her no matter what. If you and Linda or Jay and Joan adopt her, that still leaves him out. To the world, someone else would be her dad, not him."

"Bart understands all that," Barry argued.

"Does he?"

"He's seventeen," Barry continued. "He knows he can't raise a child on his own. He'll realize that."

Max laughed. While Bart may have matured, Max knew there were certain qualities about Bart that would never change. "You tell Bart he can't do something, and he'll try all the more to prove he can do it." Jay and Wally reluctantly agreed. Max sighed. "Look, I'm getting attached, too. I don't want to think about losing her, but we have to be realistic. So, the question is, what do we do? Someone needs to talk to him."

"Talk to him about what?" Jay asked. "Not growing close to that little girl is impossible for all of us. Personally, I'm not sending her back to California simply because you don't want any of us to get attached. Bart deserves the opportunity to get to know her. If we tell him anything, it's only to remind him that she may end up with another family."

Max met Jay's gaze. He knew the importance of presenting a unified front. Worse, he knew Wally would follow Jay's lead rather than his. Max still didn't know Barry that well, but he suspected Barry would do the same. He was wrong.

Barry cleared his throat. "Max is right. All of us have lost our perspective. There are no guarantees. We could learn tomorrow that the social worker has found a family to adopt her…and if that happens, it will break all of our hearts, but particularly Bart's."

"So, Wally and I start working on the paperwork now," Jay replied.

Barry nodded. "That's a good idea, but it doesn't address Max's concerns about how Bart will feel about it."

"So, will you talk to him?" Max asked.

There was a slight hesitation. "Yes."

"When?"

"I'll talk to him tomorrow."


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Day four. Bart knew he needed to stop counting the days, but he couldn't, at least not yet. Everything was still so new. Melanie had turned his world upside down in a very good way. While taking care of her was a lot of work, more than he ever thought a baby would need, he found himself cherishing every single moment. Nothing turned him off. Not the lack of sleep, the middle of the night feedings, the spit-up, the endless diapers, the crying. He enjoyed it all. Better yet, he realized he was good at it. He had already started to identify some of her different cries. The hungry cry started out soft, but if ignored for too long, turned into a loud, demanding wail that couldn't be ignored. The I'm-awake cry was more noises than crying. However, again, if ignored too long, quickly turned loud. The no-one's-looking-at-me cry was demanding. Every sound had its place.

The baby monitor signaled Melanie was waking up from her nap. Over the past days, he had also noticed how her breathing changed between sleeping and waking. She may not be making any sounds yet, but her breathing told him she was awake. When she was awake, there were some sounds he just couldn't place. Other times she would start breathing fast in an excited manner. What was she doing? What was she seeing?

Walking into the bedroom, he smiled at her in the crib. "Hey, there, are you awake already?" The sound of his voice caused her to smile. Bart picked her up, quickly changing her into a new diaper. The amount of diapers was unbelievable. The girl definitely had mastered pooping and peeing, quickly followed by spitting up.

Freshly changed, he carried his daughter downstairs. He had learned Melanie was generally content to be awake for about an hour before she started getting hungry. The exceptions were the middle of the night and early morning feedings. Those two times she demanded to be fed immediately. He was about to sit down when the doorbell rang. Jay and Joan had gone shopping. Bart wasn't sure where Max had gone. He opened the door. "Grandpa," he said in surprise.

"Hi, Bart," Barry greeted. He smiled at the baby in his grandson's arms. "She's awake?"

"Just woke up." Bart didn't even pause in handing her over. He watched as Barry smiled at the little girl, holding a finger so she could grasp it. "The tests aren't done yet, are they?"

"No." Barry continued to smile at the baby. Then he seemed to sober. "We need to talk."

Bart nodded. Immediately his mind reviewed what he could have done wrong. He knew he needed to stop assuming that every time one of the speedsters wanted to talk to him in a serious voice was because he had done something. Were he still Impulse that could have easily been the case. However, he was Kid Flash now. Besides, Kid Flash hadn't been active for the past week.

He led Barry to the kitchen. For whatever reason, the Garrick kitchen seemed to be where most discussions – where most interactions – took place. Perhaps because Joan was such a good cook and there was always a plate of cookies around. Today's selection was oatmeal-raisin. He placed the plate on the table. "Want something to drink?" He grabbed a can of soda for himself.

"No thanks." Barry waited for Bart to get settled. "Bart, we're concerned you might be coming too attached to Melanie."

Bart froze. This was not a conversation he wanted to have. Of course he was getting attached. Who wouldn't? Worse, he had been thinking he could do this, handle fatherhood. Sure, there were obstacles, but having Melanie in his life would be worth them.

"Bart, you can't be her father."

"What? She's my daughter."

"We don't know that yet," Barry reminded.

"You think she isn't?"

"No. Even without the test, I know you are her biological father." Bart didn't miss the use of 'biological.' "But that doesn't mean you can – or should – be her legal father."

"Why not?"

"You're seventeen. In the eyes of the State of California, you're dead. You don't have a job. You-"

"So, I get a job. We change my paperwork, come up with a reason for where I was. You were supposedly dead, too. You came back."

Barry sighed. "Bart, taking care of a child isn't easy. You-"

"Do you think I don't know that?" Bart snapped.

"Bart-"

"No!" he yelled, jumping to his feet. His voice startled Melanie. She started to fuss. Bart quickly took her into his arms. He stared at her. "She's MY daughter. You – none of you – can take her away. She's my family."

"Bart, all of us are your family and we just want what's best for you and Melanie."

"And how do you know what that is? Maybe I am what's best for her."

"You're seven-"

"Yeah, I'm seventeen, but I was older. I was the damn Flash for awhile." Bart glanced at Melanie. A wistful smile appeared. "She's one of the few good things that's happened in my life."

"Bart," Barry started softly, "we just want what's best for Melanie. I know you do, too."

Those words echoed words from years before, when he had been sent to live with Max, a man he hadn't known. He had never admitted to anyone how much it had hurt to not be wanted by his own family, whether that was his grandma or Wally. Sure, looking back, he knew it had been a good decision. Max had taught him how to live and function in a world that wasn't virtual reality. Max had taught him how to be a hero. He'd come to love Max, to view him as a father. But initially it had hurt. He knew what it felt like to be rejected by your own family. It seemed wrong to do the same thing to Melanie. "How do you know I'm not what's best for her? And don't say it's because I'm seventeen."

"I…we…don't know that. But, Bart, there are no guarantees she can or will stay. The state may decide to take her back to California at any moment. Jay and Joan only have temporary custody. There are no guarantees either Jay or Wally can adopt her. We just…we don't want to see you get hurt."

"Then why did you tell me about her in the first place? Why did Jay and Joan agree to be her foster parents? Why?" He looked down at Melanie who was happily gumming his finger. "Besides, I'm not the only one who would get hurt."

"No, you're not," Barry admitted.

A silence fell between them. Two sets of eyes watched Melanie. "So, why did you tell me about her? If you didn't want me to get attached, why…" Bart felt tears stinging the corners of his eyes.

"Because it was the right thing to do. You have a right to know." Barry paused. "The news caught all of us by surprise…even Iris."

So his grandma hadn't known…Bart had wondered about that. But what did that mean? Was it important? Sure, Iris had known he was going to die, but she hadn't known he would be coming back to life. She hadn't known Barry or Max would be returning. Just because his grandma didn't know about Melanie…well, it couldn't be that important, could it?

"When Jay and Joan told us about her, everyone wanted to see her. You're right. She is family. She's…I never got to know your dad or his sister. I'm grateful for the chance I'm getting to know my grandson, and I didn't want to miss the chance to get to know my great granddaughter. But in that rush…none of us thought about the potential implications. We should have."

"I want to be her dad," Bart said softly. "I know I can do this. Just give me the chance to prove it."

"Bart-"

"I can do this."

"Bart, you'll always be her dad. No one can take that away from you."

And no one will take her, he thought to himself.

* * *

Maybe Bart had had his talk with his grandpa, but it was painfully obvious by the tension in the Garrick household that Barry had shared the details of their discussion with everyone else. Bart purposefully avoided Jay, Joan and Max as much as possible. He didn't want to sit through another discussion of whether he was capable, of what was the right thing to do. Instead, he took Melanie on long walks. When they were at the house, he stayed in their room, only leaving when absolutely necessary.

He made several trips to the Central City University's Law Library. While Melanie napped in her stroller, he researched case law to see what his options were. Unfortunately, from what he could find, they were few. If he wanted to keep Melanie, if he somehow managed to make a cover story regarding his "death," he would still face an uphill battle. His age and lack of family only made matters worse. Besides, if he were alive, why didn't Jay and Joan admit it when the social worker had first come calling? Why would he have hidden his being alive from his guardians? Did he have a reason to hide it? Were Jay and Joan hiding something? Needing to maintain a secret identity left many questions unanswerable. If he wanted to fight to keep Melanie, he would first have to win the support of the speedster clan. Without their support, it was a battle he couldn't win.

For that reason, he focused his efforts on planning. To win their support, he knew he needed to prove himself to them. Sure, he had been the Flash for a short period of time. Sure, he had been an adult. But in the scheme of taking care of Melanie, neither fact really mattered. Any points he may have earned by previously being an adult or the Flash were negated by the fact he was a teenager once more. Besides, if he were to take care of Melanie on his own, he knew he needed not only their emotional support; he needed their physical support as well.

Since returning, his new paperwork had given him a high school diploma. It had been one of the perks – no more suffering through school. Yet, if he wanted to care for Melanie, he realized school was part of the equation again. If he stayed in the Keystone/Central area, he could take some classes at a local community college or vocational school. He would somehow balance out those classes with a job. Somehow.

Then there was his time as Kid Flash. He loved being Kid Flash. He loved helping people. But there was only so much time in a day, even for a speedster. Between classes, work and taking care of Melanie, would he have time to be Kid Flash? He would already have to find a babysitter for the times he was at work and school. Not having a college degree would hurt his paycheck possibilities. School, work, apartment, food, babysitter…Bart tried not to get depressed. It was overwhelming.

The ringing of his cell phone brought him back to the present. The screen revealed the caller to be Kon. He hadn't talked to his friends since Melanie's arrival. There had been too much to do, too many adjustments to be made.

"Hey, Bart, how's it going?"

Bart smiled at the sound of Kon's voice. "Weird, strange, but in a good way."

"So, is she really yours?"

"I don't know. The test results aren't back yet, but I…if she isn't, I'd be surprised. It feels like she's mine."

"So, when can we see her? Cass has been bugging me to call you. I think even Tim is curious."

"You free today?"

"Name the time, dude."

Bart quickly calculated nap and feeding times in his mind. He smiled to himself. Where video games had once dominated his life, it was now naps, diapers and feedings. Yes, things had definitely changed quickly. Shortly, the arrangements were made. The thought of seeing his friends lifted his mood.

They met along the riverfront in Central City. If the sight of seeing Bart sitting next to a stroller with an infant in his arms shocked them, they hid it well. Cassie immediately went for the baby. "Omigod! She's adorable!" Cassie held her, smiling and cooing. Melanie ate it all up. Bart had to give his daughter credit. She knew how to get attention and she knew how to keep it. For their parts, Kon and Tim smiled, but seemed a bit unsure of themselves.

Bart told his friends about the past days. Slowly, the conversation came to Bart's current dilemma – finding a way to convince the speedster clan he was capable of caring for his daughter.

"You mean they want you to give her up?" Cassie asked.

"No…yes…I don't know," he finally admitted. "They're worried the social worker could take her away, that Jay or Wally may not be able to adopt her. But I…" He looked at Melanie, feeling a small stab of emotion at his heart. "I don't want her calling Jay or Wally 'dad.' I don't want her calling anyone else 'dad.' I want to be her dad. I need to be her dad." There was so much more, but that's what it boiled down to – who would Melanie call dad?

"So, what are you going to do?" Kon asked.

Bart shrugged. "I don't know. Even if I can get around the fact I'm supposedly dead and the fact I'm not an adult, the legal system still isn't on my side. But if I can get them – Grandpa, Grandma, Jay, Max, Wally – to support me, I think I'd have a chance. But first I have to prove to them I can take care of her. I was thinking I could take some classes, find a job…" Bart shrugged. "I know it won't be easy, but I can't give her up."

"What about Kid Flash?"

He shrugged again. "Wally took some time off when he was Kid Flash. Maybe I need to do the same."

"Come live at the Tower," Cassie said suddenly.

"What?"

"Live at the Tower. There's more than enough room. Someone is always around. And it's free. Free room and board. You'd be able to take whatever classes you want to take, find a job if you want and still be Kid Flash."

Bart liked the idea. It was one he hadn't considered. In his mind, he had needed to stay in the Keystone/Central City area. But why? His friends – his extended family – were in San Francisco. Why couldn't he and Melanie live there? He glanced at Kon and Tim to see their reaction. Kon was nodding. Tim looked skeptical. "What?" he asked Tim.

Tim sighed. "Are you sure you want to expose her to our life? The world is dangerous and the one we live in is even more dangerous. Maybe letting her be adopted by a family outside the hero business would be the right thing to do."

Everyone stared at him in disbelief. "Why would that be a good idea?" Cassie demanded. "Why would you want to take her away from her family?"

"I'm not saying I like that idea. I just think it should be considered."

An uncomfortable silence fell between the friends. "She even surprised my grandma," Bart said eventually.

Tim frowned. "Iris didn't know?"

Bart shook his head. He noticed the slightly confused looks on Cassie and Kon's faces. "Grandma's from the future," he reminded them. "There are certain things she just knows. She knew I was going to die. She even knew the when and where. She tried to stop me, but I didn't listen. But she didn't know about Melanie. There's no mention of her in the future."

"What does that mean?" Cassie asked.

Bart shrugged. "I don't know. Every crisis distorts history. What my grandma knew may or may not be true anymore. I mean, she didn't know I would be back. She didn't know Grandpa was still alive. She didn't know about Max."

"So, what does it mean that she didn't…doesn't know about Melanie?" Cassie asked again.

"I don't know," Bart admitted. He looked at his daughter in Cassie's arms. He briefly wondered if he should warn Cassie about Melanie's grip. At the moment, Melanie was eyeing up Cassie's hair. Once she got her little fist around a handful, she would pull…and prying that little fist free was more challenging than he had ever expected it to be. He refocused on Cassie's question. "It could be she was never born, or maybe she died as well as Val, or maybe Val lived, or…the options are endless."

"So, what about the metagene? Does she have it?" Tim asked.

"I don't know. Grandpa's running tests. We should know soon." He knew what Tim was thinking. If Melanie had the gene, history would have recorded her at some point, assuming of course she had decided she wanted to be a speedster. Or it could be that she was killed, an option Bart didn't want to think about. Or it could be that she didn't have the gene and…what did that mean? Even if she didn't have the gene, history should have recorded her as his daughter.

Melanie finally decided to grab a handful of blond hair. She gave it a good yank. Cassie yelped in surprise. Bart and Tim smiled. Kon laughed. Cassie worked on prying Melanie's fingers free. "You are a strong little girl," Cassie said with a smile. The baby smiled and cooed as if in reply. "Bart, whatever you decide to do, all of us will support you no matter what. Just let us know how we can help." Tim and Kon nodded in agreement.

"Thanks." For the first time in days, he felt a glimmer of hope. His friends believed in him. If he could convince his family, too, maybe…just maybe…everything would work out.


	5. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Bart stared at the piece of paper in his hands. His grandpa had shared the results of the paternity test the previous day. There was a 96 percent chance he was the father. Without Valerie's DNA, a more accurate result wasn't possible. From Bart's perspective, it didn't matter. In his mind, it was close to enough to prove he was Melanie's dad. Even his grandpa had agreed.

But where did that leave him? Would the speedster family support him? Because no matter how much he planned, in the end, he needed their support. Technically – legally – Jay and Joan were Melanie's foster parents. If they didn't support him, he didn't have a chance. Their decision would be influenced by the other speedsters.

Since seeing his friends and knowing he had their support, his outlook had improved. Now, it was time to win the speedster support. Now, he just had to find the courage to face them. So much easier said than done.

A squawk sounded from the crib. Bart refolded the test results and set the sheet of paper on the dresser. "Ready to go see grandma and grandpa?" Bart asked Melanie. Melanie smiled and kicked her legs. "At least you're excited. Wish I could say the same." Bart quickly changed her diaper. Picking her up, he smiled at her. "Here's the plan. You wow them with your magnetic personality and keep them from asking any questions. Sound good?" Melanie blew a bubble.

If it were up to him, he never would have agreed to have lunch with Barry and Iris. It was easier to avoid everyone, especially since he knew the topic of keeping Melanie was bound to come up. However, his grandma was a very persuasive woman. And Melanie was their great-granddaughter. And if he wanted to gain their approval and support, he knew he eventually had to make a presence. Besides, his grandma would keep his grandpa in line…or at least he hoped that would be the case.

The tension had continued in the Garrick household. However, it had changed a bit. Bart sensed a tension not just between him and Max and Jay, but something was also brewing between Joan and Jay and Max. Not that he was about to ask any of them what was up with that.

With a sigh, Bart realized he couldn't delay much longer if he didn't want to be late. Like Wally, Bart had an aversion to being late, only because Barry was perpetually late. Going downstairs, he was surprised to find the Garrick house quiet. Everyone was gone. With a shrug, Bart loaded up the diaper bag, slipped its strap over his shoulder, shifted Melanie in his arms, locked the door and headed to the Allens' house.

As usual, he approached the house from the back. He quickly ran his fingers through his hair and patted down the few strands on Melanie's head that had become windblown from the run. She smiled. Taking a deep breath, he knocked in the kitchen door. Barry opened the door with a smile. "Hi, Bart. Hey there, princess," he greeted with a smile, taking the baby.

Immediately Bart realized he had been had. First, his grandpa was actually home. Second, he could hear voices coming from the living room. Third, he could feel the tension. "You tricked me," Bart stated.

Before Barry could comment, Iris appeared. "We did not trick you," she said. "We were planning to have lunch, just the four of us, but something came up." Something came up that involved the entire speedster clan? Yeah, right. Since his grandpa already had Melanie, there was no chance for a quick escape. With a scowl, he stepped inside. Iris kissed his cheek and smiled. "Trust me on this one, kiddo."

Bart followed Iris to the living room. The usual suspects and…Joan and Linda? What was going on? The tension level was high. The sight of Melanie caused smiles to appear, but the smiles were forced. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Barry got the test results," Max answered.

The test results. There was only one test remaining – the metagene. Bart's gaze flew to his grandpa, who was studiously looking at Melanie. "And?"

"She doesn't have the metagene," Barry answered softly.

"What? But that's… It can't be right, can it?"

"I ran the test twice. Both times same result. She doesn't have the gene."

"But…" Bart's mind raced to comprehend what that meant. The metagene. The gene could be dominant or recessive. Just having the gene didn't guarantee superpowers. To gain superpowers, the gene had to be dominant. For his grandpa, Jay and Wally, the gene had been present, but recessive. Their freaks accidents had somehow turned the gene to the on position. That was about the extent of the current research. Research had focused on how the gene activated, not how it was inherited. Even in the cases where the gene had turned on, little was known as how the gene turned on. The why seemed to always involve some freak sort of accident that should have killed the person yet didn't. Once turned on, it was assumed the gene would remain dominant in any progeny produced. "But, you said she's…" He couldn't finish. Did this mean she wasn't his daughter? Was that pesky four percent more significant than it appeared?

Barry finally met his gaze. "I stand by those results. She is your daughter. She just doesn't have the gene which…" Barry shook his head, clearly unnerved by the results. Bart understood the confusion. At least from the speedster perspective, the gene seemed to be passed down. Barry's kids had had speed. Wally's kids had had powers, even though currently only Irey had speed. Bart had speed.

But it was more than just the speed. Melanie didn't have the gene. How could that be? How could she not have it at all? "But that…"

Jay cleared his throat. "The research has looked at the gene, but never how it's passed along from parent to child. Apart from Eobard, the Thawnes didn't have speed. Even Eobard didn't get the speed in an accidental sort of manner. If Valerie didn't have the gene at all, and if you only inherited it from your father, Melanie could be exempt."

"So, she'll never have powers," Bart said softly.

"No, she won't. Not even if she's bathed in chemicals and struck by lightning," Barry said.

Bart shrugged. "So what? She's still my daughter. Who care if she doesn't have speed? It doesn't change anything."

"Yes, it does," Max replied.

Bart looked at his former mentor. From the tone of Max's voice, he guessed this was the source of the tension. "Why?"

"She has a chance to live a normal life," answered Max.

"She has a chance to be free of all the craziness," added Jay.

Bart felt his frustration starting to build. "Who cares? Since when do you need to have powers to be part of this family? If that's the case, why is Jai still here? Why not give him to a normal family?" It was a low-blow, but he didn't care. When neither Wally nor Linda snapped at him, particularly Wally, Bart was surprised. Instead, they were looking at Jay and Max. Did that mean Wally and Linda were on his side? Could he dare to hope?

"Bart, that's not the point."

"Then what is?"

"You're seventeen-" Max started.

Here we go again, thought Bart. "Am I? Admit it, no one, including me, really knows how old I am. My age is totally screwed up. Maybe for once that's a good thing. We can tweak my paperwork, revise my story. I can be eighteen. I can be a legal adult."

"Just because we can, doesn't me we should," noted Jay.

Bart tried not to get disappointed, frustrated or irritated. It was hard. "Look, I want to be her dad," he stated. "I know you don't think I can do that, but I've been giving it a lot of thought and I've come up with a plan. I can live at Titans Tower. That way I'd have help and also keep expenses low. I've found two community colleges where I can take the general requirements until I figure out what I want to do. I should be able to get some grants or loans to help pay. Tim said he could probably get me a part-time job at WE." He paused and looked at the faces around the room, trying to gage their reaction to his words. They hid their emotions well. "I want to take care of Melanie. I want to be her dad. I know what it's like to be taken away from your family. I don't want that to happen to her. I know I can make this work."

"Bart-"

Right or wrong, he cut Max off again. "What do you have against me? I'm not Impulse anymore. I grew up. It's not my fault you weren't around to see that." Bart immediately regretted the words. Max frowned. Bart sensed looks of disapproval from the others as well.

Max grabbed Bart's arm and started to pull him from the room.

"Max," Barry began, standing up, Melanie still in his arms.

"Bart and I need to have a talk. Alone," the elder speedster said tightly. Max pulled Bart toward the door.

"No." Bart looked at his grandma in surprise. So did everyone else.

"Excuse me?"

"I said no. You and Bart aren't having a private discussion. He owes you an apology, but then all of you owe him one as well."

Max's frown deepened. "With all due respect, Iris, you don't know what you're talking about."

"With all due respect, Max," replied Iris, "it's you who need to take a step back."

Bart silently held his breath as the battle of wills between Max and Iris continued. "Max, Iris, I think we should all-" Jay started.

"No, Jay, Iris is right," Joan said.

Bart watched silently at this surprise coup. Linda hadn't said anything yet, but given that both Barry and Wally had remained silent, Bart suspected his cousin and grandpa knew when the battle was turning. Bart only hoped it was in his favor.

"Bart, I think it's safe to say that none of us doubt your ability to raise Melanie. It's not a matter of your age or your abilities. All of us believe you can do it." Iris sent a pointed look at both Max and Jay. "However, there are legal issues, and in that area, their concerns are valid. There are no guarantees that either the Garricks or the Wests would be able to adopt Melanie. And even if they were," she added, "it still leaves you in an awkward position. Linda and I are reporters. So, we did a little investigating to understand your options."

"I contacted Dick Grayson. Dick asked his, or rather Wayne Enterprises', attorneys to review the legal options," Linda explained. "It gets tricky. Generally speaking, case law is on your side. But if the state decides to contest, it could get nasty. The first step is to make you undead in the eyes of the state. The state also needs to understand your family connections."

"Obviously, secret identities immediately become a concern," Iris continued. "So, I contacted Lois Kent and explained the situation. If needed, the man in blue is ready and willing to provide a little inspiration regarding the delicacy of the situation." He wanted to smile. Batman and Superman to the rescue. "The attorneys have started preparing the necessary paperwork to present to the Department of Social Services. I know Superman will be able to make them understand the complications this case presents."

"So, when do we talk to them?" he asked, failing to hide the excitement in his voice.

"It's not quite that easy," Iris answered. "We still need to make a few adjustments to your story. Besides, Max and Jay do raise some key issues, especially since Melanie doesn't have the metagene. She has the chance to be free of the hero crowd. That can't and shouldn't be overlooked. Just being alive is filled with dangers, but you must admit that those of us connected to the hero community face increased risks, whether directly to ourselves or to our loved ones." Iris paused. "But saying all that, I think you should be given the chance to raise your daughter, but with one condition. You raise her here, in the Central/Keystone area. She may not have the metagene, but if she's going to part of this quirky family, she needs to be in the middle of it. Besides, while San Francisco may not be a big deal for you speedsters, it's not quite as easy of a trek for us wives, especially if we don't want our husbands tagging along." Iris smiled.

Bart looked around. Wally and his grandpa were smiling. So, too, was Joan. Bart met Jay's gaze. After the merest hesitation, Jay nodded. One down. Bart turned his gaze to Max. Max wasn't frowning, but he also wasn't smiling. "Max?"

Max stood with his arms crossed in front of his chest. "Bart, I don't think she should stay with you or with any of us. I don't doubt your abilities. I know you can take care of her. I just think, especially since she doesn't have the metagene, that she should be able to live a spandex-free life. I think a family not connected to the hero business should be allowed to adopt her." Bart didn't even try to hide his disappointment. Max was like a father to him. Max's opinion mattered and to know Max didn't think Melanie should be with him…it hurt.

Then Max's expression softened. A small smile appeared. "Apart from all that, though, I will support you in whatever decision you make. You're right. You are no longer Impulse. You've grown into a responsible young man. You've shown me – you've shown everyone – that you are capable of doing this. And I agree with Iris, if the girl stays, she stays here, not California, because this grandpa will want to see her often." A smile broke across Bart's face. He hugged his former mentor tightly.


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Bart closed the textbook and rubbed his eyes. It was well after midnight. He was tired. He wanted to go to bed, but it wasn't an option. He still had to finish writing his biology lab report. Had everything gone according to plan, he would have finished the report shortly after Melanie had gone to bed. But Melanie had decided she didn't want to sleep and had loudly expressed her intentions of not sleeping. Trying to study while Melanie wailed had been pointless. He hadn't been able to concentrate. Eventually, he had broken down and rocked her to sleep, something he hadn't done for weeks. Even then, she had fought falling asleep, eventually succumbing after almost an hour of rocking. Bart wondered the reason. Maybe it was teething. The amount of drool she produced seemed to be completely disproportional to her size. Linda had laughed at his comment and said it would get worse.

Ten weeks had passed since Melanie had first entered their lives. Seven weeks had passed since the State of California had grudgingly transferred temporary custody from the Garricks to Bart. As predicted, the state had raised many unanswerable questions regarding Bart being alive. With Superman's assistance, the issue had remained under control. Apart from his identity, the rest of the Flash family remained unknown, even though the state now knew there were links. More impressive was the fact that his attorneys, or more accurately the WE attorneys, and Superman had convinced the state on the need for continued secrecy, going so far as to include safeguards regarding the protection of his own identity. The state hadn't argued. Bart suspected the Wayne Foundation was making some sort of grant to appease the department.

Bart was hoping the temporary custody was just that – temporary. Under the terms of the agreement, he had been assigned a social worker – thankfully someone from Kansas not California – with whom he needed to check in with on a regular basis. The agreement also specified that Jay and Joan have an active part of his life, even though the agreement did not define what "active" meant. While the terms weren't usual, given his unique circumstances, the attorneys hadn't pushed it. If he could prove himself capable to the state, permanent custody would be his.

The transition to taking care of Melanie on his own was progressing as smoothly as could be expected. They had moved into a small apartment in Keystone City. The timing had coincided with the start of a new semester. Having Oracle as an acquaintance also proved beneficial. His story had been edited to suddenly include college entrance exams. As a result, Bart had been able to enroll at a local community college, taking the basic college courses that would fulfill general education requirements. He still didn't know what he wanted to do. From his previous life, he had enjoyed his weeks at the police academy, but still had a few doubts as to whether that was what he wanted to do. For now, taking the general education requirements seemed to be the best approach.

Luck continued to be on his side in that he had also managed to land a work-study position at the college's library. The money came nowhere near paying the monthly bills, but for the time-being, his grandpa and grandma and the Garricks had offered to help him out financially. He recorded every penny he received from them. Someday he would pay them back.

While part of him still wondered if he should have moved west, another part recognized the perks of staying in the Central/Keystone area. Sure, the other Titans would have helped, but he had to admit that he felt better knowing family was looking after Melanie and not Gar or Kon or, well, almost all of the Titans. Besides, he could see the impact Melanie had made on the lives of the speedster clan. He may not have been missed if he had moved west, but she would have been terribly missed.

Finding people willing to babysit Melanie was almost too easy. Bart knew he could spend more time away, but he didn't want to. He missed Melanie when he was gone. Besides, if he wanted to assume responsibility, he needed to take care of her most of the time, not someone else. Joan watched her on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Wally and his grandma shared Monday and weekend shifts. Max handled Fridays.

So far, his decision to stay in the Central/Keystone area only had one downfall. Between school, work and taking care of Melanie, he rarely saw his friends. While he did manage to assist as Kid Flash now and then, most of the assisting was done with another speedster, not the Teen Titans. The handful of times he had helped the Titans had been a mixed success from his viewpoint. Yes, he got to be with his friends. Yes, he got to do what he loved. But it also meant finding a babysitter. He had also discovered that during the heat of the battle, his mind wasn't necessarily focused on the fight. Instead, he found himself wondering what Melanie might be doing or worrying about finishing a school assignment. Neither of those thoughts was helpful. Nor was it safe. He knew his friends had noticed his absence. Thankfully, they hadn't pointed it out.

Watching Melanie grow and learn was fascinating. She had been part of their lives for over ten weeks. Over that short period of time, Bart was amazed at how much she had changed. Rolling over, batting at toys, smiling, laughing, cooing. Currently, she was working on sitting up.

Her eating and sleeping patterns had also changed. The pediatrician had given approval to start solid foods. Melanie was learning to eat cereal. At first, more had ended up on her than in her. Thankfully, she seemed to have finally gotten the hang of eating from a spoon. Her sleep patterns had become a bit more predictable. She generally slept through the night, usually going to bed around nine o'clock and waking between five and six o'clock. The daytime included three naps: morning, afternoon and a short evening one. Her awake hours had also increased. Overall, Melanie was proving to be a happy and healthy baby.

Bart rubbed his eyes again. Screw the lab report. He'd finish it in the morning. Might as well put the speed to some use. Besides, he wasn't living with Max anymore and what Max didn't know wouldn't hurt him. Also, raising a daughter seemed to be a good reason for not doing something at a "normal" pace.

He checked on the sleeping princess. Satisfied all was well, he fell into bed and slept. The alarm sounded too soon. He quickly turned it off, hoping it hadn't awakened Melanie. No such luck. She immediately let him know she was awake. Experience told him he probably had about two minutes before the babbling would turn into protests.

Luck was on his side this morning. He was able to stretch it for almost four minutes. As soon as she spotted him standing over the crib, she smiled and held out her arms. Bart picked her up. "Good morning, sweetie," he greeted with a smile and kiss. "Did you sleep well?"

Melanie's smile grew. She also managed to grab a clump of his hair and gave it a good yank. "Ow," he said. Melanie laughed. Bart pried her fingers loose, then went about changing her diaper and making her breakfast. As he fed her her cereal, he booted up his laptop. Done with her cereal, he secured her in her activity chair. "Now, don't you go telling Grandpa Max on me," he teased. "Max is really, really big on doing things at normal speed, but what fun is that?" His fingers flew over the keyboard. Two minutes later, the report was done and emailed to the professor.

While his report was due today, he didn't have any classes. Nor did he have to work. Bart glanced at Melanie. She paused in her playing when she realized she had his attention. A smile erupted. Bart returned the grin. Outside, it was a beautiful, sunny, seasonal day. "How about if you and I head to the riverfront? Both of us could use some fresh air." Melanie waved her arms as if she understood. Bart laughed. "I'm glad you agree with me."

Sometime later, Bart pushed Melanie in her stroller along the riverfront. Others had had the same idea, even though Bart noted all of the others were women and were all older than him. Between the rhythmic movement of the stroller and morning nap time, Melanie fell asleep. Bart paused. It was before noon. Since he was already in Central City, he could call his grandma or grandpa to see if either of them would like to meet him for lunch somewhere. Or in his grandpa's case, he could just show up at the police station and not give him an excuse to either back out or be late. Bart decided to go with his grandpa.

At the police station, Bart checked in with the front desk and waited for Barry to appear. Calling Barry himself would have been an option, but having the front desk call him seemed the better choice. Ten minutes later, Barry appeared. "Bart," he greeted, "this is a surprise. Is everything okay?"

A flash of guilt washed over him. Bart noticed the worry on his grandpa's face. He had never thought a surprise visit would result in Barry worrying that something was wrong. Maybe he should have called first. "Yep. I didn't have classes today and the weather is nice, so Melanie and I went for a walk. Thought you might be able to join us for lunch?"

Barry smiled, relief on his face. "That sounds like a great idea. Let me quick go-"

Bart tuned him out. "We'll wait outside," he interrupted.

"I'll be there soon."

Today, soon was defined as almost twenty minutes later. Bart knew not to get irritated. Time just got away from his grandpa. Both his grandma and Wally complained about it. Even Jay had mentioned it once. On the positive side, Melanie had awakened from her nap during the time.

They grabbed a bite to eat from one of the many vending carts that appeared near the lunch hour and ate at the park. Bart updated Barry on his classes and Melanie. Barry shared the latest news from the hero community. While Barry also shared what Barry considered gossip, Bart had learned that Wally was a much better source of information. Bart still wasn't quite sure why that was, except that Wally seemed to have worked with many, many more heroes than Barry ever had. Barry seemed to command respect because of who he was. Wally demanded respect not only because of who he was, but also due to the relationships he had built over the years. Now that Barry was back, he, too, would probably develop an extensive network. In the meantime, Bart secretly admired his cousin.

As they talked, Barry held Melanie. The smile never left his face. Likewise, Melanie smiled and laughed. Bart saw the love in Barry's eyes as he looked at Melanie. His grandpa may have expressed concerns about whether Melanie should stay, but it was easy to see Melanie had won him over, just as she seemed to win over everyone she met, even Max.

Throughout their conversation, Bart had the nagging sense they were being watched. He casually furtively surveyed the surroundings, but no one stood out. "What's wrong?" Barry finally asked.

Bart shrugged. "I don't know, probably nothing. I just…I just feel as if someone is watching us."

Barry frowned and casually looked around. "Did you notice before you met me?"

"No."

"I don't see anyone or anything suspicious."

"Neither do I. It's probably nothing."

Barry smiled. "Or maybe parenthood is getting to you."

Bart returned the grin. "You're probably right." Of course he worried about Melanie. He seemed to constantly worry about her. What else could it be?


	7. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Another two weeks passed. During that time, Bart experienced three more instances where he would have sworn someone was watching him. Once he had been by himself. The other two times he had been with Melanie. In none of those instances had he actually noticed any suspicious looking individuals. Instead, the instances had left him feeling uneasy. He thought about asking the other speedsters if they had noticed anything strange or out of the ordinary, but he didn't want to worry anyone else. Nor did he want to sound paranoid. It was probably nothing but an overactive imagination teamed with his new role of being a father.

The instances did make him think a bit more about security. The apartment building was like most other buildings. A key was needed to open the building's front door, but residents tended to hold the door open for someone who wanted to come inside, whether they recognized that person or not. As for the door to his apartment, it had a deadbolt, chain and peephole. Standard apartment security.

The Justice League offered to install security systems for anyone who requested it. Jay had a basic system and had only installed it after Ralph Dibny's wife had been murdered. Wally had the complete system, but then Linda had been threatened more than once and he had kids. So far, his grandma and grandpa hadn't installed anything, even though Bart knew Wally was pushing for at least the basic system.

When Bart had moved into this apartment, he hadn't thought about security mostly because he had a secret identity. Even before he had died, his identity hadn't been known outside of the hero community, and even within the hero community not everyone had known the name of the person behind Kid Flash. But then he had died and his name had been announced at his funeral…memorial…whatever. Yet to the world at large, Bart Allen was still dead. With Kid Flash's reappearance, the public hadn't viewed it as the return of Kid Flash II, but instead a new Kid Flash, Kid Flash III. Bart was perfectly okay with that minor discrepancy.

In the end, he just couldn't justify installing a security system. If no one knew who he was, then no one would know who Melanie was. Apart from Jay and Joan, the rest of the speedster clan had secret identities. Sure, Wally had a system and a secret identity, but Wally had bad experiences from when his identity was known and old habits were hard to break. In Bart's mind, installing a state of the art security system seemed like overkill.

Bart glanced at Melanie, contentedly playing in her activity chair. She noticed him looking at her and smiled. Bart made some funny faces and she laughed. With a sigh, he turned back to the computer screen. He had another lab report due. Why had he ever signed up for chemistry and biology? When he wasn't writing a lab report for one, he was writing a report for the other. He found the busy work annoying. He should have registered for women's studies instead. He smiled at the thought. At least that should have been much more interesting.

Melanie, dissatisfied she was no longer the center of attention, squawked, threw a toy on the floor and squawked louder. She had recently made two huge discoveries – gravity and cause and effect. If she let go of something, it dropped. It didn't matter what, it always dropped. Bart had hoped after the first fifty or so times, his daughter would have accepted the law of gravity, but no. She continued to test it…constantly. Then there was the cause and effect rule. If she tested gravity by dropping – or more than liking throwing – a toy, someone would pick it up for her. It was a great way to get attention. And, like her infatuation at testing the law of gravity, the thrill of testing the cause and effect relationship never bored her either.

Bart finished typing the sentence before retrieving the toy. "Once more and then I take it away," he warned. Melanie smiled and drooled. Okay, it was an empty threat, especially when she immediately tossed it. Bart snatched the toy before it hit the ground and tickled her with it. "If you let me finish this report, we may have time to go for a stroller ride." Bribery. Not that she understood him. He was going to be so screwed when she finally realized what bribes were. Melanie smiled and threw the toy. "Yeah, that's what I figured you'd say." He piled the chair's tray with toys. At least tossing all of them would keep her occupied for a few minutes, long enough to finish the report.

Slipping back into his chair, he glanced at his notes and prepared to continue. When he looked at the screen, everything he had typed was gone. In its place was a question – _Who is she?_

Bart frowned. The paranoia he had been feeling quickly reappeared. Who? How? He hadn't sensed anything. He cautiously looked around the apartment from where he sat. Nothing seemed out of place. There was no sign of any disturbance. Melanie was contemplating which toy to toss next. Hesitantly, he highlighted the words and deleted them. Immediately another sentence appeared. _You can't protect her._

That time he sensed something. A slight electric charge. The chair fell backwards as Bart jumped to his feet. "Who's there?" he demanded. Melanie jumped at the tone of his voice. Her smile disappeared. Her bottom lip trembled.

Bart unconsciously fingered his ring. Wearing the Kid Flash costume seemed a little over the top, particularly since he didn't see anyone. Silence filled the apartment. No one had answered his question. He stared at the computer screen. No new words appeared. It didn't matter.

It was no more a matter of whether someone was watching him; it was a matter of who was watching him. Even though he couldn't see anyone, instinct told him someone remained close by. He needed to get Melanie out. He needed to take her someplace safe. Once he was certain she was safe, he would be able to think, to analyze what was going on. "Okay, Mel, I think it's time we go. Maybe instead of Wally watching you here, you can stay at his house today."

When he turned to look at his daughter, the chair was empty. Then he saw the intruder, Eobard Thawne, aka Professor Zoom. Thawne held Melanie. Fear and panic clutched his heart. His mind started to race.

Thawne. It all made sense. Three weeks ago, Thawne and a handful of other criminals had escaped from Iron Heights when the prison's power system failed. The backup generators had also failed. Eight prison guards had been killed and almost two dozen injured during the ensuing melee. So far, the police and the speedsters had rounded up almost all of the escapees. Thawne had been a notable exception. None of them had been overly concerned because no one, not even Max the Zen Master of Speed as Wally called him, sensed the villain. It had lead them to become complacent…or maybe just unconsciously accepting that whenever the man reappeared, Barry would be the obvious target. Obviously they had been wrong.

The man smiled. "When I saw you with Barry the other day, I couldn't understand why you had a baby. Were you babysitting some whelp? What other explanation could it be? Then I learned the truth. She's yours. But history doesn't say anything about you having a daughter," Thawne commented, staring at the baby. Melanie looked frightened. She looked at Bart, held out her arms to him and leaned toward him.

"Give me my daughter," Bart demanded, hoping his voice sounded more confident than he felt.

Thawne ignored him. "So, what does that mean? I have to admit, I was thoroughly confused for a bit. But then I recalled the obvious love Barry has for this little one. She would be what, his great granddaughter? How would he feel if something were to happen to her?"

An icy chill had settled over his heart. The link to Barry. So maybe they hadn't been completely wrong on assuming the man would target Barry. Bart forced himself to focus on the present, not on what Thawne was capable of doing. "Give me my daughter," Bart repeated. Melanie was moments away from crying.

"I think you're missing the big picture here. I'm the one to give orders, not you." Melanie continued to squirm. She also started to cry. Thawne looked at her, not even trying to hide his disgust. "I'd highly recommend you shut her up. I have little tolerance for babies, particularly babies with Allen blood."

"Then give her to me."

"No."

Melanie's cries were quickly increasing in intensity. So, too, was Thawne's irritation. Bart felt his panic increasing as well. He stared at Melanie, trying to grab her attention, but she was too far gone. Looks wouldn't provide the comfort she required. She needed to be held. "She won't stop crying unless you give her to me."

"I can make her stop," Thawne said. He placed a finger against the side of her head. "Did they ever tell you how I killed Iris? Or at least I thought I had killed her." Thawne shrugged. "It really doesn't matter that I didn't, because at the time, Barry thought she was dead. It ruined his life, at least for awhile. How would you feel?"

Fear. Bart had never felt this level of fear before, not even when he had faced the Rogues, knowing he was about to die. He had to protect his daughter. Without thinking about the consequences, Bart rushed forward, intending to snatch his daughter and run. It was a desperate move. Not surprisingly, Thawne saw him coming and swatted him away. Bart flew into the kitchen counter, his head cracking against the cupboards. He felt a rib pop. "That was stupid," the elder speedster replied, immediately at Bart's side. He kicked the teen viciously. "Now, I'm angry. Now, your daughter is going to see me beat you to a pulp."

Bart curled into the fetal position to try to protect himself. He knew he had to get up. He knew he had to try to get Melanie. But Thawne was too fast for him. Thawne was out of his league. Even Barry and Wally had trouble keeping up with Thawne. Perhaps if he had still been the Flash, with the extra power, he would have had a better chance.

Blackness started to creep into his vision. He hadn't felt this level of pain when he had died or when Deathstroke had shot out his knee. He tried to remain focused. He couldn't blackout. Melanie needed him. Thawne would kill her, kill her without hesitation.

Without warning, the beating stopped. Bart said a silent prayer of thanks. He'd been given an opportunity to regroup. It was an opportunity he couldn't overlook. At some point, Melanie had stopped crying. Why? Why had she stopped? As much as it hurt, he had to move, he had to see if Melanie were still alive. If he focused on her, he could get through this. He had to get through this. There was no other option. Arms shaking, he pushed himself up. A quick glance showed Thawne once again staring at the baby, studying her.

"How much do you think she'd be worth? Who wouldn't want to have the chance to kill one of the Flash's kids? I'm tempted to do it myself. Ridding the world of Allens is a lifelong goal. But then I think about Grodd. His hatred of the Flashes almost equals mine. Just think of what one swat by one of his paws could do. Or maybe that Zolomon guy that gave West hell. Didn't he say that you needed to experience pain to become a better hero? Then again, I think I'll skip him. I don't want you to become a better hero. I want you dead. I want all of you dead. But first, I want you to suffer. I think I'll let you wonder what I'm doing to your daughter."

"Please, don't-"

Thawne gave one more vicious kick. The world went black.


	8. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

"Bart?" A hand insistently shook his shoulder. "Bart?"

Bart opened his eyes slowly. He blinked in confusion. What had happened? Why was he lying on the kitchen floor? Why was Wally kneeling next to him with a worried look on his face? He tried to sit up. The room started to spin. Pain made him cry out.

"Bart, lie still," Wally instructed. For once, Bart didn't argue with his cousin. He felt Wally's hands complete a quick assessment of his injuries. What had happened? Everything was blurry. His head pounded. His side felt like it was on fire. He could taste blood in his mouth. He'd been in a fight, but with whom? When Wally finished, Wally looked at him closely. There was something in Wally's expression that caused a chill to run down Bart's spine. Something was wrong, something was very wrong. "Bart, where's Melanie?"

"Melanie," he mumbled. If he were hurt, was Melanie hurt? And what did Wally mean, where was she? She was here with him, wasn't she? He tried to sit up. Another wave of dizziness washed over him.

Wally put a hand firmly on Bart's shoulder. "Lie still. Bart, where is she?" he asked again.

"I…I…" Bart closed his eyes and willed himself to remember. What had happened? Why couldn't he remember? "I don't know," he finally admitted. "Help me up, please."

Wally hesitated, but eventually put a hand under Bart's elbow and another around his back. Bart swayed. Wally's grip tightened. His cousin snagged a chair with his foot, pulled it close and helped Bart sit. Wally knelt in front of him. "When I got here, your door was open a crack. I found you lying unconscious on the floor and no baby. Do you remember anything about what happened?"

Bart tried to concentrate. It didn't work. His mind wandered. "Why are you here?"

"Because you have – had – classes this morning. I was going to babysit."

School. Morning. Babysitting. It made sense, but yet it didn't. Bart's eyes roamed the room. Eventually they settled on the activity chair. Where was his daughter? Why wasn't she here? His eyes drifted to the open laptop on the table. Seeing the laptop, everything clicked into place. The memories flooded back. "Oh, god, no," he whispered.

"Bart, what do you remember?" Wally's voice held a sense of urgency.

Tears stung Bart's eyes as he recalled with startling clarity everything that had happened. He had failed. He hadn't protected his daughter. His one job…his one responsibility…he had failed. And now…now she was in a situation that was beyond dangerous. Her life was in danger.

"Bart?"

"I…he…he has her."

"Who? Who has her?"

Bart met Wally's gaze. "Thawne," he whispered.

Wally paled.

* * *

Thawne defined the situation's response. Instead of the police, he got the hero community. Wally had immediately contacted Barry, Jay and Max. Soon others had been called to help. Bart suffered through an examination by Dr. Mid-Nite. His enhanced metabolism had already kicked in, the healing process well underway. His vision remained blurry. Things continued to spin if he moved too quickly. Dr. Mid-Nite had informed him that he had a concussion and a list of other injuries. The doctor wanted Bart to go to either the Watchtower or the JSA headquarters for a more in-depth examination. He was worried about possible internal injuries. Bart had refused. Whether correctly or incorrectly, the Speed Force would knit him back together. If it was incorrectly, he'd deal with that later. He didn't have time for anything else and there was no way he was leaving. Dr. Mid-Nite didn't try to hide his displeasure, but he didn't push the issue either. For that, Bart was thankful.

Before departing, Dr. Mid-Nite said a few words to Max. Max nodded and shook the man's hand before sitting next to Bart on the sofa. Bart leaned against his former mentor, savoring the feeling of security when Max put his arm around Bart's shoulders. For an instant, his mind flashbacked to his years as Impulse, when Max had always seemed to know what to do, how to fix whatever had gone wrong. Now he was older and more mature. He knew Max couldn't magically fix what had happened, but a part of him wished he could still believe it were possible. "Where is she, Max?"

"We'll find her," he reassured.

Bart desperately wanted to believe Max's words, but again, his maturity made him more cynical. He glanced toward the kitchen. The additional help that had been called in was Dick Grayson, aka the Batman; Hal Jordan, aka the Green Lantern; and Alan Scott, aka the original Green Lantern. It wasn't lost on Bart that the others had called in their best friends. Why hadn't his best friends been called? If everyone could have their best friends present, why couldn't he have his? "Why aren't Tim or Kon here?"

"Tim is overseas. Kon is busy with the Titans at the moment. Both have been left messages. I'm sure they'll come as soon as they are able."

Bart knew they would come as soon as they heard. "If something happens to her…" Bart couldn't finish the thought.

Max squeezed his shoulder. "Bart-"

"It's my fault. I should have stopped him. I should have-"

"Bart, Thawne is-"

"It doesn't matter. I'm her dad. I'm the one who's supposed to protect her, who's supposed to keep her safe. You told me I'm responsible and I should have-"

"Bart, stop."

He looked up to see his grandpa standing in front of him. Bart noticed that both his grandpa and Wally looked haggard. What had happened hit close to home for both of them. This was the man who had killed his grandma, or at least thought he had. This was the man who had attempted to turn his grandpa into a killing machine. As for his cousin, this was the man who had helped another villain make Wally relive one of the worst days of his life again and again. Thawne had fought each of the speedsters in the room. None of those battles had gone well. Of all the Rogues, why did it have to be Thawne? "He's going to kill her," Bart said softly, tears falling.

Barry knelt in front of him. "Bart, we-"

"He hates Allens," Bart continued, ignoring his grandpa. "He talked about how he had killed grandma." Bart looked at Barry. "He put his finger next to her head. He was going to…" In his mind, he recalled Thawne's actions with painful precision. In his mind, he recalled how useless he had been, the sheer terror at knowing what Thawne was capable of doing. What kind of hero was he – what kind of dad was he – if he couldn't protect his own daughter? Bart looked down at his hands. "He said killing her would…he wants to hurt you."

Barry placed a hand on Bart's knee. "I know. And he is. He's hurting all of us. Bart, you need to believe that we are going to find her."

Bart looked up to see his grandpa's blue eyes gazing at him. There was a quiet confidence in his gaze. If his grandpa had any doubts, he had them well hidden. "But you don't know where he is, or even when he is."

"We'll find her."

"But-"

A sudden breeze cut off the rest of his words. "Bart, we-" Twin beams of green light lashed out, effectively creating a barrier between Bart and the new arrivals. "Dudes!"

"Everyone, stop!" Batman ordered, a scowl on his face. The rings were lowered, the green barrier disappeared. "That was stupid," he told the two visitors.

"I warned him," one teen said.

"Whatever," replied the other.

His best friends had arrived. Superboy and Red Robin were there. If he had thought their arrival would give him comfort, he was wrong. Instead, it only emphasized how dire the situation was.

* * *

Time seemed to crawl by. For a speedster, time was already slow. Seconds could feel like hours, minutes like days and hours like years. Now, it was worse. Melanie had been gone for over twenty-four hours. Thirty-three hours, seventeen minutes, twenty-one seconds and counting to be exact. Bart couldn't think about anything else. Was she still alive? It was hard to imagine Thawne keeping an infant. What would he do with her? Why would he want to keep her? Maybe he viewed her as a bargaining chip, but a bargaining chip for what? Thawne's goal was to make Barry's life hell. Kidnapping Barry's great-granddaughter definitely fit the bill. But if that were his only purpose, there was nothing to bargain. There was no reason to keep a baby alive.

Thinking back over the past few weeks, Bart mentally kicked himself for not trusting his instincts that something was wrong. He had known Thawne was free. That should have been enough. But it hadn't been. It hadn't been for anyone in the speedster clan. No one had taken extra precautions. Taking extra precautions had never even been mentioned. Maybe it had been simply because in Thawne's case, extra precautions wouldn't really matter. Even the Justice League's top of the line security system couldn't protect against Thawne.

During these past thirty-three hours, seventeen minutes and twenty-two seconds, he had been ordered to stay on the sidelines. He had been forbidden to participate in any of the search activities. Bart had tried to argue why he shouldn't be included, but it had been pointless. Didn't anyone realize how that had made him feel? He already felt horrible. Being pushed to the sidelines, being told to basically stay out of the way, had only made everything worse. With nothing to do, he constantly relived those moments, thinking about what he could or should have done differently. With each second, his guilt grew.

It had been Wally to the rescue. Definitely an unexpected occurrence. Bart never would have guessed that Wally would understand how he felt. The need to participate. The anger at being pushed to the side. The need to do something…anything. Wally had suggested that Flash and Kid Flash stretch their legs, do a safety check of Central and Keystone. Best of all, Flash had deferred to Kid Flash to use his judgment as to what should be done with the criminals they encountered. Wally had stayed on the sidelines, only ensuring Bart never went too far. The speedsters had left a string of packages across the cities for the two police departments. They had even broken up two playground fights.

"Feeling better?" Wally asked, as they took a break.

"Yeah. Thanks." While his thoughts continued to go back to his daughter, the chance to blow off some steam had helped. Maybe he wasn't helping in the search for his daughter, but at least he was helping in general.

They were about to grab a quick bite to eat when the emergency call came over their communicators. Someone had blown-out one of the rails along the track that connected the airport to the downtowns. Then, because nothing in life was ever easy, someone had also tampered with the train's brake lines. The commuter train wouldn't be able to stop. A derailment was guaranteed. It was just a question of how many would die. Without hesitation, they took off. It was quickly revealed to be too big of a job for the two of them. Jay and Barry soon appeared, with Max appearing a second later.

Bart concentrated on his role of rescuing people from inside the train cars. Max was doing the same. While they rescued people, Barry, Jay and Wally focused on preferably stopping, but at least slowing, the train.

"Choose."

Bart paused. Had he heard something? They were pushing the speed of sound, staying just under it to avoid creating sonic booms. Even though they were moving just under the speed of sound, sound did travel slower. Not seeing anyone, he continued moving people.

"Choose."

"What?" This time he knew he had heard something. Bart turned around in confusion, trying to locate the voice.

"Save them or save her."

Melanie. Thawne. Bart spun around. "Show yourself!" Immediately Thawne appeared. No baby. "Where is she?"

Thawne smiled. "Are you willing to sacrifice the lives of many for the life of one?"

Bart stood in front of Thawne, anger building inside him. "Where is she?"

"What would Allen think? Or West? Or Garrick? Or any of them?" Thawne waved his hand toward the people around them, people that appeared to be frozen in time. "Would they still look at you the same way if you willingly let all of these people die?"

"Where is my daughter!"

Thawne continued to smile. "So, will you let these people die? Like this?" Thawne slammed his hand into the neck of a man standing nearby. Even though the man continued to stand, Bart knew Thawne had broken the man's neck. The man was dead. "Will you let them die? Will you?"

Bart stared at the man as he realized the full ramifications of Thawne's words. He had to choose. Save his daughter or save these people. Was it even a choice? "Yes," he answered softly. It was shameful to admit. However, his daughter…if he had a chance to save her, he had to take the chance. These people would have been destined to die anyway if the speedsters weren't around. Maybe Max and the others would save them all anyway.

Thawne grinned. "Maybe there's more Thawne blood in you than I thought." He grabbed Bart's arm. "Let's go." As they left Thawne snapped his fingers, creating a sonic boom, removing the possibility of the speedsters rescuing anyone else.


	9. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Thawne dumped Bart in the middle of an empty warehouse. Bart had lost track of where they had run. For all he knew, they could still be in Central or Keystone City. Knowing Thawne, they probably were. He staggered to his feet. "Where is she!"

"Silence!" Thawne slapped him.

Bart staggered back, tasting blood in his mouth. He glared at the man. He had to remember that Thawne was out of his league, that his chances of beating Thawne on his own were nil. His only hope was that they – the speedsters – would somehow find him. How, he wasn't quite sure. For the time-being, he needed to stall. That at least was the logical approach. Bart wanted to think Tim, Max and his grandpa would be proud of him for at least thinking of a logical approach. However, just because he thought it, didn't mean he would do it.

Melanie had to be here somewhere. It was the only logical reason why Thawne would bring him here. There, he had linked logical and doing and now was definitely time for doing. Even knowing his chances were nil, Bart took off to search for his daughter. Parental instincts outweighed logic. Thawne grabbed him and slammed him into the wall. Bart dropped to his knees, his breath knocked out of him.

"Do that again, and you'll both be dead," warned Thawne.

Looking at the ground, Bart fought to regain his breath. When he looked up, Thawne was holding Melanie. Words couldn't aptly describe the relief he felt at seeing her. She was still alive. She didn't appear to be hurt, at least not physically.

Thawne stared at her with a mixture of fascination and revulsion. "I've tried to find reference to her. There is none. Why is that?" Bart remained silent. "Is it that she isn't supposed to exist? Or that she died young? Or that she just isn't important?" Thawne shook his head. "Not that it really matters. She obviously means something to you and Barry." He placed his fingers close to her head. "What do you think would happen to her if I snapped them?"

Bart recalled the anguish Wally had endured when Zoom had done something similar to Linda. Linda had almost been killed. Their unborn babies had been killed. If Thawne unleashed a sonic boom that close to Melanie, his daughter would be killed. "She doesn't have the metagene. That's why there's nothing about her. She'll never be a speedster." The words came out in a rush. Thawne hated speedsters. If Melanie would never be a speedster, maybe he would leave her alone.

The words made Thawne pause. He cocked his head to the side. "Really? That is unexpected. I suppose you think that means she should be able to live."

"Kill me. Don't hurt her."

"It's a tempting offer, but here's the thing. I'm going to kill both of you. Poor Barry will lose his grandson and great-granddaughter. Think of what that will do to him." Thawne moved his fingers.

"No!" Bart stood to rush the other man, knowing he would never reach Thawne in time but also knowing he had to try. A microsecond before Thawne finished snapping his fingers, Wally appeared and grabbed Melanie. The sonic boom sent both him and Wally flying. As soon as his body stopped moving, Bart sprang to his feet and raced to his cousin's side, noticing Wally had used his body to protect Melanie.

"Get her out of here," Wally ordered, holding Melanie out for Bart to take. Bart noticed the sonic boom hadn't fazed his daughter. She seemed to be in a trance. Shock. He shook his head. It wasn't important, at least not now. He needed to get her to safety.

"No!" screamed Thawne.

Bart couldn't remember what happened next. He had taken Melanie and tried to run, but… When everything came back into focus, he was kneeling over Thawne and Wally was pinning his arms behind his back. Melanie was gone. "It's over, Bart," Wally reassured. Bart breathed harshly, staring with hatred at the man under him.

Thawne gave him a bloody grin. "This isn't over," he spat. "It will never be over. I'll kill her. I'll kill you. I'll kill West and his kids. I'll-"

Bart wrestled an arm free and punched Thawne, knocking him out. "Shut up! Just shut the-"

"Stop, Bart, it's over," Wally repeated, again restraining his arm. "It's over."

"He's right, Bart, it's over." Bart recognized his grandpa's voice. "She's safe."

He looked over to see his grandpa holding Melanie. Relief. Joy. Happiness. Wally let go of his arms and pulled him to his feet. As he stood, he couldn't resist kicking Thawne in the side. Both Barry and Wally frowned, but didn't say anything. Bart didn't care. He just wanted – needed – to hold his daughter. Taking her into his arms, tears coursed down his face. He held her close, finding relief in the feel of her in his arms again. She was safe.

He kissed the top of her head. Melanie only stared at him. Terror filled her eyes, yet she didn't cry. Belatedly, he realized she wasn't used to seeing him – or any of them – in costume. Given Thawne already knew who they were under the masks, the secret identity part seemed a moot point at the moment. He pulled back the mask. "It's okay, Mel. Daddy's here. It's okay," he said softly, the words reassuring himself as much as he meant them to reassure her. He kissed the top of her head again, saying a silent prayer of thanks. The sound of his voice seemed to register. She looked at him closely and started to cry.

"Is she okay?" Wally asked.

Bart quickly looked her over. She was dirty. Judging by the smell, he doubted her diaper had been changed. Who knew when she had last been fed. "I think so." Bart murmured reassurances. Melanie's cries were transitioning to screams. He recognized them. A mixture of hunger, fear and pain. "Shh, it's okay." He held her a little closer. "How did you find me?"

Wally shrugged nonchalantly. "I tagged you."

"You tagged…" Bart smiled as the meaning of the words registered. His cousin had planted a tracer on him. Under any other circumstance, Bart would have been livid. Now, he was only thankful for his cousin's insight.

Wally returned the smile. "I know what it's like to be pushed to the sidelines. I also know how tempting it is to make a break for it when given an opening. You and I are more alike than either of us will ever admit. I know I would have made a break for it at some point. I couldn't take that risk with you. Gramps here would kill me."

Barry lightly whacked Wally on the back of his head, a smile on his face. Then he sobered. "All three of you to the Hall of Justice now," he ordered.

As soon as Barry said the words, Bart realized his own aches and pains. His costume was torn and flecked with blood. He also first noticed that Wally didn't look too good either. They had taken on Thawne and lived to tell about it. Wally had put his life on the line. Had Wally not reacted and redirected most of Thawne's anger, Bart knew he – but more importantly Melanie – would be dead. His mind recalled some of the threats Thawne had tossed at Wally, saying Wally's kids and wife would be next, describing what he would do to Linda and Irey before he killed them. His respect for his cousin grew. He knew Wally didn't realize how much he looked up to him and respected him. Bart didn't plan on telling his cousin any time soon either. There were some things that were better left unsaid. "Thank you."

Wally nodded, the movement causing a grimace to appear. "Let's go."

* * *

Inside the one of the medical bays, Dr. Mid-Nite set down a bowl of warm water and some towels. He handed Bart Melanie's diaper bag. At Bart's questioning look, Dr. Mid-Nite only answered "Max Mercury." For the moment, Melanie seemed to have cried herself out, but she wasn't yet asleep. Bart dug through the bag, removing a clean outfit and diaper.

Twenty-five torturous minutes later, Melanie was clean and happily sucking on a bottle, her eyelids growing heavy. With the exception of a very bad case of diaper rash, a couple of small bruises and a little dehydration, Melanie was fine. The diaper rash was nasty. Bart had figured it would be bad. Pee and poop had leaked out of the diaper unto her clothes. The clothes she had been wearing he had tossed in the trash. He didn't want to see them again. Cleaning her bottom had been a scream filled experience. Bart had held her while Dr. Mid-Nite had done the honors. At the moment, her entire bottom was covered with medicated cream. Dr. Mid-Nite warned the next few days would be bad as the rash healed. Bart knew it was a small price to pay. "Will she remember any of this?"

Dr. Mid-Nite shook his head and smiled at the baby. "No. She's too young, which is a good thing. However, she'll probably be more clingy than usual for awhile, probably a few more tears." Bart nodded. "Now, it's your turn."

"I'll take her," Barry said, stepping forward, not even giving Bart a chance to protest.

He hadn't noticed his grandpa enter the exam room. Given Melanie's screaming, he doubted he would have heard him. Most likely her screams had drawn Barry's interest. At the moment, though, Bart didn't want to give her up. He wanted – needed – to hold her, to reassure both her and himself that everything was going to be alright. "I'm fine. I just want to take her home."

"Bart, you're letting the doctor look at you. You are not leaving here until he does. Understood?" Bart recognized the tone of voice. It was similar to one both Max and Jay had used too many times to count. Arguing would be pointless. Reluctantly he nodded. "Now, give me the princess. She and I will be right outside."

Thankfully, the "princess" had finally fallen asleep. Clean clothes and a dry diaper had helped, but drinking the bottle had been the key. Handing her over…letting her out of his sight…it was irrational to think she wasn't safe. She was in the Hall of Justice, surrounded by heroes. No one – or at least no one in their right mind – would attempt anything. But he had just gotten her back. He didn't want to let her go, even knowing she would be safe.

His grandpa sensed his hesitation. He felt a hand squeeze his shoulder. "I promise we'll be right outside. If she makes the tiniest of squeaks, I'll bring her back in here, with no thought at all as to what the doctor may be doing to you at the time," he said lightly. His expression grew serious. "It's over, Bart," he reassured. "She's safe. You're safe. It's over."

With a brief hesitation, he handed her to Barry. A tightness filled his chest as they left the room. He recognized it – panic and fear. He forced himself to breathe. He tried to relax. It didn't work. Was it really over? Was she really safe? Or was it just the beginning?

* * *

Dr. Mid-Nite pronounced both him and Wally to be fine, just the usual hero pounding. Nothing a little rest wouldn't fix. Bart knew the truth, though. While his physical condition may have been fine, his mental condition was another story. The incident with Thawne had completely rattled him.

Over the years, he had never really thought that the threats he faced as a hero could also become threats to his family. Sure, Inertia had caused some headaches by threatening Max, but those paled to what Thawne had done to his grandpa and what Zoom had done to Wally. In both those cases, though, everything had turned out to be okay. While he hadn't witnessed this grandpa's grief at the death of his grandma, he had witnessed Wally and Linda's grief. Only now did he truly understand the full ramifications of what had happened, of how they – his grandpa and cousin – really must have felt knowing they had been the cause, knowing none of it would have happened if they hadn't been the Flash.

For the first time since seeing Melanie, Bart was having doubts about whether he – or any of the speedster family – was the best option for her. Suddenly, the missing metagene seemed to be even more important. She wouldn't ever have the speed or any other superpowers. She could grow up normal, or as normal as normal was. Did that mean she should also be raised by a normal family? Or at least one not linked to the hero community? Did it matter? Would it keep her safe?

Over and over, he recalled Max's words, "Bart, sometimes being responsible means admitting you can't do something." Was keeping her safe something he couldn't do? Thawne was an anomaly of sorts. Being from the future, he had access to information others didn't have. He knew the names behind the masks, at least for the speedsters. Chances were his pride would keep him from sharing the information with others. It would be something Thawne could hold over others to prove his superiority. Still, Thawne would be a continued threat. Others could and would become threats. For whatever reason, Iron Heights, the Slab, Arkham Asylum, and all the other facilities meant to incarcerate the villains never seemed able to hold them. Should Melanie be forced to face that risk when alternatives were available? Was it fair for him to make her face those risks? Was he just being selfish?

Bart lightly pushed back a few strands of Melanie's hair as she lay napping in his arms. The fact the kidnapping had only resulted in a bad case of diaper rash was a miracle. Bart knew it could have been worse, much worse. The diaper rash had resulted in numerous tears being shed. Each changing had turned into a major tear and screaming event. Bart couldn't blame her. The rash was so bad it had blistered in some spots and developed into sores in others. Between the medicated cream and "air time" – otherwise known as naked butt time – the rash was quickly healing. Today was the first day no tears had been shed, at least so far. But each of those tears had broken his heart. He was the reason she was in pain. It was his fault.

True to Dr. Mid-Nite's words, Melanie had been clingier. For the first two days, only he could hold her, feed her, dress her, do anything with her. She needed to have him constantly in sight. If she couldn't see him, tears quickly appeared. By day three, she had started to mellow. She still got anxious if he stayed out of her sight for too long, but she was starting to tolerate other people holding her again.

Bart's own anxiety mimicked his daughter's. Yet, his didn't seem to be getting better. If anything, it seemed to be getting worse. He needed to know that she was safe, that she was okay. He barely slept due to his need to keep a constant vigil. He knew his fears were irrational. Having moved back in with Jay and Joan – and Max – at least for the time-being, there was always someone else around. He was never the only speedster home.

Jay had also had the Justice League upgrade the security system on his home. The Garrick household no longer had just the basic package, but instead had all the bells and whistles. Supposedly, the only safer place on the planet was the Batcave. All of that should have made him feel safer, but it didn't. Every little noise made him jump. He had become an emotional basket case.

He knew he had to get his emotions under control, but it was easier said than done. He didn't know how to relieve his anxiety. Worse, he just kept hearing Max's question over and over in his mind. Max himself hadn't said anything. Instead, he only showed and expressed concern for both Bart and Melanie's welfare. Bart knew his former mentor wouldn't pound home the issue. Max had said he would support Bart in whatever decision Bart made and that's what Max was doing. That's what all of them were doing. But it just-

A light knock sounded on the door frame. Bart looked up to see his grandma standing in the bedroom's doorway. Not only was everyone supporting him, he also knew they were all worried about him. One by one, they were trying to get him to talk. Now was obviously his grandma's turn. He turned his attention back to Melanie.

Iris smiled at the sleeping baby, her hand lightly resting on Bart's shoulder. "Bart, honey, you need to get some rest."

"I'm fine," he mumbled. None of them seemed to understand that he had failed his daughter. His job was to love, take care of and protect her. He had failed on the third item. That's why it didn't matter that Jay had upgraded his security system or there was always another speedster around – it wasn't their responsibility; they hadn't been the ones to fail. The responsibility and blame fell squarely on his shoulders. He couldn't – wouldn't – fail again.

"No, you're not. When was the last time you really slept? Not just little catnaps?" Iris sighed when Bart remained silent. "Bart, Melanie needs you at your best. Right now, you're not. You need to believe that everything will be-"

"Grandma, please leave."

"Bart-"

"Please." After a brief hesitation, she kissed the top of his head and left, closing the door behind her. He felt terrible pushing everyone away, but he honestly didn't know what else to do. What had happened wasn't their fault, it was his. He needed to either accept it and move on…or…he wasn't sure. Because accepting it, at least in his mind, also meant accepting it could happen again, and that was simply unacceptable.

A few minutes later, another knock sounded on the door. Who now? With a growing sense of frustration, he threw open the door. "Look, I just want to be…Tim." He stared at his friend in surprise, the anger draining from his voice.

The corner of Tim's mouth quirked slightly. "Hey, Bart," he greeted. His eyes took in the baby in Bart's arm. "She's really growing."

"Yeah." Bart watched Tim cautiously. His entire body was on alert. Right now, he didn't know if one of his best friends was a friend or foe. He wanted to believe friend, but then this was Tim and Tim was part of the Bat family. When it came to the Bat family, never assume.

"I heard about what happened."

"And?" Testiness had entered the tone of his voice.

"And I wanted to let you know that you're not alone. I'm here to help in any way I can."

His family had been saying the same thing for days. For whatever reason, though, the words meant more coming from Tim. Perhaps because family was expected to say those things. Tim didn't have to say or do anything. He had no such obligations. For that reason, Bart felt the wall he had built up around himself fall a bit. His tension eased. He looked at Melanie. "I don't know what to do," he admitted. "I'm supposed to protect her and I failed. She got hurt."

Tim frowned. "I thought she wasn't hurt."

"Well, not hurt, hurt. She had a couple bruises, mild case of dehydration and some very nasty diaper rash. Still has the rash." Bart noticed Tim was trying to hide a grin. "Okay, okay, so it wasn't life-threatening injuries, but the potential was there. Besides, if you'd've heard her cry during diaper changes, you'd've thought she was dying."

Tim's grin broadened. "It's strange hearing you talk about diaper changings." Bart shrugged. Tim sobered. "I know what you mean, though. Bart, every parent tries to protect their kids to the best of their ability, but no one can protect their kids from everything. That's just part of life."

"But our life isn't normal," Bart noted, stating what Tim had left unsaid.

"No, it's not." A silence fell between them. "Bart, are you having second thoughts about keeping her?" Tim finally asked.

"I want to do what's best for her. I don't…I never knew my dad. I don't remember him. I've met my mom, but…" He shrugged. "Grandma took me away because it was the safest thing to do. Maybe it's what I need to do, too. It would keep her safe. But at the same time, I don't want to give her up. She's my daughter. I know I can be a good dad. I know I can do this."

"No one doubts you can do it. You've shown you can. I hate to admit it, but even I had my doubts about you. But you've proven everyone wrong." Tim paused. "You need to decide what's best for Melanie, not for you."

"I know." That's what was so hard. What was best for her…well, it was probably not what he wanted. He didn't know if he was ready to face that fact.

"There's someone I think you should talk to," Tim said.

"Who?" Bart's mind raced as he tried to figure out to whom Tim might be referring. No one came to mind.

"You'd actually talk to someone? Someone you don't know?"

"Maybe that will make it easier," he answered honestly.

Tim nodded. "I'll talk to this person. If they agree, I'll send you a time and location. Okay?"

"No hints? I mean I doubt it's someone in the Bat family, because otherwise you'd probably tell me. But it must be someone connected to the Bat family. Am I right?"

"You know I have connections outside of the Bat world."

"Yeah, sure, you're a Wayne now. You have oodles of beautiful women pounding down your door." Bart noticed Melanie had awakened. He shifted her in his arms. She immediately spied the new person in the room. Surprisingly, she didn't snuggle closer.

Tim laughed. "That's Bruce and Dick, not me."

"No hints?" Melanie grabbed his shirt collar and pulled. Bart tried to pry her fingers loose. This banter with Tim felt good. It brought a small sense of normalcy.

"No hints." Tim paused, watching Bart and Melanie interact. "Being a Wayne has perks, lots of perks."

"Yeah, money, awesome cars, beautiful women," Bart listed, having successfully loosened the fingers only to have Melanie shove her hand into his mouth.

Tim shook his head. "Yes, there's all that, but if there's anything you need, anyway I can help, just let me know, okay? If I can't or don't know how, Bruce or Dick or even Alfred probably do, and Bruce and Dick have the connections to get almost anything done."

"Thanks, Tim." Bart had noticed Tim watching Melanie. "Do you want to hold her?" Immediately he sensed Tim's hesitation. He smiled. "She's getting better with other people holding her again. She should be good for at least five minutes." He held her out to take away Tim's options.

Tim held her rather reluctantly. Melanie eyed him critically, not quite certain about this new person. Then, surprising both Tim and Bart, Melanie smiled, grabbed the collar of Tim's shirt and happily stuffed it into her mouth.


	10. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

One week later, Bart found himself sitting on the top of the Gotham National Bank, his feet dangling over the edge, waiting for his contact to arrive. Why was it the bat folks had to meet on top of buildings? Was even an alley asking too much? Not surprisingly, it was also nighttime. Yet another Bat family standard. At least for the moment, the Bat signal was unlit.

With each passing second, he contemplated leaving. Yes, he had agreed to meet whomever, but as he waited, his doubts started to get the better of him. In reality, what could this person do? What could this person say? What was there to say besides the empty platitudes? No one could guarantee Melanie's safety. No one could promise him that all would be well. Maybe those expectations weren't realistic, but Bart honestly didn't care. Besides, he had died and was now alive again – how realistic was that?

Time may heal all wounds, but it was doing nothing for his anxiety level. He still hadn't had a good night's sleep since he had gotten Melanie back. Just knowing he would have to leave her for an hour or so to come to Gotham had been difficult. Knowing she was in the capable of hands of his grandparents had not eased his worries. Bart knew worrying was part of being a parent, but his level of worrying was not normal. Being a parent shouldn't be this hard. He should be able to sleep at night, or at least most nights.

Over and over his mind returned to one question – what was the responsible thing to do? Why couldn't he get Max's question out of his head? He almost wished Max would raise the question again, then he could at least justify his mind fixating on the topic. Yet, Max remained silent on the topic. Instead, Bart would catch himself staring at Melanie, wondering if he was being fair to her. She was still young enough to easily start her life over. If she left now, she'd never have any memories of him. Was that what was best for her? But then he would remember the pain he had felt at being rejected by his grandma and Wally when he had first come to this time period. Was it fair to make Melanie go through that as well? Maybe she wouldn't understand now, but eventually she would, eventually she would feel rejected.

He suddenly felt the presence of someone else. Quickly turning, he almost fell off the ledge in surprise at the proximity and identity of his visitor. Catwoman. What was she doing here? Before he said a word, she sat down next to him and smiled gently. "Tim told me what's happening." Bart froze at her words. Tim. Not Red Robin. Not even just Robin. Tim. Catwoman knew Tim's identity. Why? How? All of the Bat clan redefined paranoid when it came to secret identities. His mind raced to put a civilian name to Catwoman's face, but nothing came. Her smile stayed in place. With a quick movement, she pulled down her goggles and pulled back the hood of her costume. "Selina Kyle," she greeted, holding out her hand.

Selina Kyle. That name was familiar. Wasn't she either dating or had dated Bruce? Wait – Bruce had dated a villain? Bart's mind continued to race, question upon question popping into his head. He pushed his questions aside. At the moment, they weren't important. If Tim knew her, if Tim trusted her enough to tell her his identity, then he knew he could trust her as well. With a small smile of his own, he pulled back his own mask. "Bart Allen." He shook her hand.

She frowned. "Bart Allen…didn't you die?"

"Long story."

Selina only nodded and brought the conversation to the topic at hand. "You're probably wondering why Tim thought I could help."

"You could say that." Catwoman. He never would have guessed Catwoman.

A sad and wistful expression appeared on her face. Her hands tightly clenched the edge of the roof. "My daughter turned two a few months ago. I haven't seen her for over a year. I don't know where she is. I don't even know if she still has the same name." Bart felt a chill settle in his heart. This was going to hit close to home, hit way too close to home. Again the urge to leaving was almost overwhelming.

After a brief pause, Selina shared her story. Having a baby girl, starting a new life in hopes of raising that daughter only to have her past life catch up with her. "Giving her up was the hardest thing I've ever done…but it was the only thing I could do. She wasn't safe anymore, at least not with me. No matter how hard I tried, I knew I wouldn't be able to protect her. She had been linked to Catwoman. She could be used as a pawn against me, something I couldn't have happen."

Bart looked away. Tears stung his eyes. She didn't use the empty platitudes. Selina understood. He had finally found someone who truly understood.

"Bruce helped me. His attorneys took care of everything. I gave up my daughter. I cut all ties to her, because as her mother, it was the only way I could truly protect her. It was the only way I could show her how much I loved her," she said softly. Selina wiped away a stray tear. "It wasn't easy. It's still not easy. There are days I wonder if I did the right thing. Then there's a crisis or some nutcase and I realize I didn't have a choice. I chose this life. Maybe when she's older, she'll someday choose this life. But I couldn't choose it for her."

Silence fell between them. Bart stared off at the horizon. "How much did Tim tell you?"

"That you're in a similar situation. That you have a daughter. That she was kidnapped by one of your rogues. That you're confused about what's best for her."

"But how much did he tell you about me?" Because to understand his hesitation, she needed to understand him, understand who he was.

"He only said I would be meeting Kid Flash. I didn't even know your real name."

He reminded himself that Tim trusted her, that Bruce trusted her. Or at least they trusted her enough to let her in the big Bat secret. He hoped she could follow his story. While he had given up his identity, he wouldn't – couldn't – give up the identities of others. "My name is Bart Allen. I was born in the 30th century. My grandpa is the Flash, the one that just recently returned. The other Flash is my cousin." Slowly, he shared his story. Being born with the metagene, the speed force killing him, his grandma taking him back in time to save his life. "I don't remember my parents. My dad is dead. He was murdered. My mom…she still lives in the 30th century. I've met her, but I couldn't stay with her." He missed her. It had been a couple years since he had last seen her. "My grandma brought me here to save my life. I know they loved me. I mean, they must have to give me up, to let my grandma take me away. They did what they thought was best. They saved my life. Now, I'm facing that same question. But I…I don't want to give her up. She's family, my family. I…I know what it feels like to be given up. I know my parents did what they thought was best. I know they love me…but it still hurts. I…It's…I never had a choice. I know she's too young to make that choice, but…" He shrugged. And then there was what had happened with his grandma and Wally. Living with Max turned out to be a good decision, but to be rejected by your own family…it had hurt. It had made him wonder what was wrong with him that no one seemed to want him.

"How did this rogue connect you and Kid Flash?"

"Professor Zoom, Eobard Thawne, is from the 25th century." Bart smiled slightly at the surprised look on Selina's face. "Yeah, a kid from the 30th century and a villain from the 25th, and here you probably thought the Bat family had issues. Anyway, he knows all about the Flashes, including our identities. He wants to wipe out our existence. But what's really twisted is that if he kills me, or kills my daughter, he's killing his descendant. See, I'm not only a descendent of the Flash, but also Professor Zoom. My mom is a Thawne."

Selina kept her emotions guarded. If his pronouncement surprised her, she hid it well. Bart felt his own emotions slipping. "What do you want to do?" she asked gently.

"I want to keep her. I don't want to give her up. But if I keep her…" He shrugged again and stared into the distance. "I already failed once. I had a simple job. Protect her. Keep her safe and I failed. He'll try again. And if it's not Thawne, eventually it will be someone else, and I just…what if I fail again? What if I fail again and she's hurt? Or killed? She doesn't have the metagene. She…she'll never have powers."

Selina hesitantly put her arm around Bart's shoulders. "But you can protect her. She can be safe."

"I know…but she's my family. She's…I…want to keep her. She…she…I have my grandpa and grandma and my cousin and my mentor who's sort of like a dad, but it's not the same. I know what it feels like to be given up. Even if it's for a good reason, it hurts. It's like I did something wrong…and she didn't…hasn't…done anything wrong. It's me. It's my fault, not hers." His thoughts and words were becoming jumbled, a sign of his growing agitation.

"Bart, it's hard. I know it hurts, but what if it happens again? And as much as I hate to say it, it's probably when it happens again, not if. Am I right?" Bart remained silent. Selina pressed on. "How will you feel when it happens again? What if she's hurt the next time? The guilt you feel now, it will be nothing compared to what you'll feel if she does get hurt."

Bart continued to remain silent. He didn't want to think about it, yet he knew he had to, because Selina was right. It was just a matter of when, not if. He knew that. And if Melanie got hurt…knowing he could have kept her safe, Bart knew it would probably push him over an edge, over a line. Because maybe this time he could convince himself that it wasn't his fault, but if it happened again, knowing he had had options and had refused to take them, well, then it would be his fault.

"You know Bruce and Tim will find a safe family. They're anal by nature and will triple check everything. You wouldn't be able to find anyone better." Selina paused. "Bart, I think you know what you want to do. In your mind, you've decided. You just haven't let yourself voice that decision. Your heart hasn't accepted it."

"I…" He stared at his hands. He didn't even try to hold back the tears. Maybe because Catwoman – Selina – understood. Or maybe just because deep down he knew that he didn't really have a choice. If he wanted to protect his daughter, if he wanted to keep her safe, he had to give her up. Just like his parents had. Once again, Thawne had impacted the Allen family. Is this how it had felt for his parents? Did it hurt this much? Did they feel this helpless? This useless?

"It will hurt. God, it will hurt. There will be days when you are so angry, so hurt, that it consumes you. But the pain will eventually dull. It doesn't ever quite go away. Birthdays, holidays…you'll always remember, always wonder what could have been, where she is. But the consolation is knowing that she is safe from all the freaks we face, knowing that Bruce and Tim will ensure that whatever family cares for her, gets to call her their daughter, is the best possible choice."

Her words were sincere. Tears continued to blur his vision. He had to give up his daughter. He had to protect her. He had to forget she even existed. "I have to give her up," he whispered.

Selina pulled him close. Bart rested his head against her shoulder and cried.

* * *

Everything happened too fast. Bart had hoped the process would take months. Instead, it had taken four weeks. Asking Tim for help had proven to be much, much easier than telling the speedster clan his decision. Countless tears had been shed, but none of them had questioned his choice. Maybe they had already known.

The Wayne Enterprises legal department had proven to be as efficient as usual. They had created a list of five potential families. Bart had had the option of selecting which family got Melanie. He had declined. It would have been too much. It was hard enough giving her up, but to have to choose the family as well…it was an extra responsibility he didn't need. Instead, he had asked Tim and Bruce to decide. Once selected, Tim had shared some basic facts. The couple lived in the Midwest. They had been married for ten years. The wife was unable to have children due to a car accident. There was a large extended family that was very close. Tim had assured him the entire family – parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins had gone through a thorough security check, including investigators looking for information that might not be available in government files. They had even checked out the neighbors. Everyone had passed.

The legal department had also addressed any questions and concerns raised by the California Department of Social Services. Considering he just had "temporary custody," Bart assumed those concerns were numerous. The department was probably less than thrilled they had been somewhat strong-armed into granting him temporary custody only to have him now giving up his parental rights. If the department raised any concerns, Bart never heard about them. Maybe the department had received another large donation from an anonymous donor.

Their final night had been spent at Wayne Manor. Bart wondered if that was simply Tim's way of ensuring that Bart didn't take Melanie and run. Probably. But staying at the manor had made it a little easier. Having to face the speedster clan in the morning would have been hard, would have made what he knew he needed to do nearly impossible.

Thankfully, Tim or Alfred or Dick or maybe even Bruce had made sure that Damian wasn't around. Bart couldn't stand that kid. He could easily imagine the remarks Damian would have probably made. From his own experience, Bart knew learning social cues wasn't easy. Yet knowing and accepting were two different things. For that final night, Damian – and Dick – had been away.

Selina had also been present. Whether it was Tim's idea or Selina's, he wasn't sure. It didn't matter. The fact she was able to put aside her own pain to be there for him meant a lot. He imagined his situation was making her relive her own decision. He hadn't missed the tears in her eyes when she had seen Melanie. He wasn't hurt when she didn't show any interest in holding Melanie. Instead, Selina had quickly left the room.

Then there was Alfred and Bruce. Alfred was just Alfred. Nothing ever seemed to faze the man. As for Bruce, Bart hadn't quite known what to expect. It was Bruce/Batman that had given him the name Impulse. Bart had never figured out if it had been meant as praise or a slam. He suspected a slam. And while Tim had assured him previously that Bruce admired what he did as Kid Flash and what he had done as the Flash, Bart never felt comfortable around Bruce. Then again, did anyone outside of the Bat family? Melanie quickly answered that question. With one smile, she obviously had the billionaire wrapped around her little finger.

That final night had been the hardest night of his life. In one of the guest bedrooms, he had settled into a chair and held Melanie the entire night while she slept. He didn't want to forget the feeling of her in his arms, the scent of her hair, how she looked when she slept, how…he just didn't want to forget. For the first time in his life, time moved too fast. Before he knew it, the eastern sky had started to brighten. Morning had arrived. It seemed wrong that it would be a bright, sunny day. Where were the storm clouds when he needed them? Changing her diaper, getting her dressed, feeding her breakfast – a mantra repeated itself in his head – "for the last time." With each passing second, the urge to run became stronger and stronger.

The drive into Gotham was quiet. What was there to say? For her part, Melanie seemed happy and content. If only she knew what was about to happen. If only she knew the existence of Melanie Dawn Allen was quickly coming to an end.

The papers were to be signed in an empty office suite in a building owned by Bruce. When the office door clicked shut, leaving just him, Melanie and Tim in the room, Bart knew the final countdown had truly begun. Somewhere in the building waited Melanie's new family. Bart held her a little closer. Melanie finally sensed something was up. She had grown more pensive and clingy.

"You can still change your mind," Tim noted. "Nothing's been signed. No one will think any less of you."

Bart rested his cheek against the side of her head. "I know. It's tempting. But it's…it wouldn't be right." It wouldn't be right. Not for him. Not for Melanie. Not for the husband and wife that waited somewhere in the building. Tim only nodded. They waited in silence, Bart fighting back the tears.

A soft knock sounded. The door opened. Bruce and a man whom Bart assumed was an attorney entered. It was time to sign the papers. In his chest, his heart started to beat harder. Bart pretended to listen as the attorney explained everything, but all he heard was a loud roaring noise in his head. He knew the specifics. They had reviewed them previously. If – when – he signed, he was giving up all parental rights. He would have no say in her upbringing. He was to have no contact. He would cease to exist in her life; she would cease to exist in his. "Mr. Allen, do you have any questions?" the attorney concluded.

"No," Bart answered hoarsely.

"Then I'll need you to sign and date these papers." The man pointed out the blank lines and set a pen on the table.

"Bart, take all the time you need," Bruce said gently.

If he took all the time he needed, he would never sign the papers. Hesitantly, he picked up the pen. Melanie immediately made a grab for it. It was too much. Bart felt the feeble grasp on his emotions starting to fail.

"Bart, let me hold her," Bruce offered.

Melanie went to Bruce with no hesitation. Rather than battle Melanie for the pen, the attorney had produced another one. The first signature was hard. When it was done, he knew he had to do the rest quickly. He did.

Handing the baby back, Bruce and the attorney left. They had reviewed the logistics the previous night. He now had fifteen minutes to say goodbye. He felt hollow. How did he even begin to say goodbye? Melanie watched him closely. He needed to put on a brave face for her sake, but how could he when his heart was breaking in two?

"Do you want me to leave?" Tim asked.

Bart couldn't speak, his throat tight. He only shook his head. He no longer fought the tears. He held Melanie tightly. "I love you so much," he whispered. "I'll always love you. I'll never forget you. No one will. You stole our hearts. You…you…" Then it became too painful. To have to wait another thirteen minutes was unfathomable. Bart kissed the top of her head, tears coursing down his cheeks. "Tim, take her. Please, take her. I can't… Just go."

After Tim had taken her and left the room, Bart sunk to the floor and cried. His daughter was no longer his daughter. He had…he had…

He didn't hear the door open and close. He didn't register someone kneeling next to him. But when a pair of arms wrapped around him, he felt a small measure of comfort. "Let it out, Bart. Just let it out," Selina said hoarsely.

He did.


	11. Epilogue

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine.

Epilogue

Had he ever been to Des Moines before? Had he ever had a reason to be there? Bart highly doubted it. It was Des Moines. It was Iowa. Not that Kansas was that much better in his mind. Yeah, he lived in Kansas, called it home, but not really by choice. Instead, it was tradition. Okay, maybe he could have called Missouri home, but again, not much better.

Bart sighed. He had arrived at the park with fifteen minutes to spare. Speedsters and downtime never went well together, but waiting at home hadn't been working either. So here he sat and waited. Maybe she would be early. As he sat, he nervously twisted the wedding ring on his finger. His wife knew about Melanie. His three kids knew they had a half sister somewhere in the world. He may not have been able to acknowledge her as his daughter, he may not have been able to watch her grow up, he may not have even known where she lived, but he had never forgotten her. He had made her part of the family he did have. It was the least he could do.

As part of the adoption agreement, Melanie had had the opportunity to learn about him once she turned eighteen. When that magical date had arrived, Bart had anxiously awaited for any sort of notification. The process had been built into the adoption agreement. She only needed to contact the legal department at Wayne Enterprises. The notification had never come. After a year, he had given up. She didn't want to know about him. He had forced himself to accept the truth, even though it had hurt. Time had continued to pass.

Then Tim had called. Melanie had finally made contact. She wanted to meet him. Part of him was overjoyed at the prospect. Another part was cynical. Why now? Why did she wait seven years? What had suddenly changed? In talking to his wife, the speedster clan and his friends, they had all asked the same question – did it really matter? The answer was no. She wanted to meet him. There was no way he would turn her down.

So, here he sat. Waiting to meet his grown daughter. Selina had been right. The pain had never gone away completely. There was always a dull ache. Through the years, he had found himself looking at dark-haired girls the same age as Melanie would have been and wondering where she was. What did she look like? What were her likes and dislikes? Did she ask, or even think about, about him?

Bart still couldn't clearly remember that first week after he had signed the papers. His memories remained foggy. He had spent the week at the manor. Tim had stayed close. So, too, had Selina. When he had finally ventured back to Keystone City, it had been heartbreaking. His reappearance at the Garrick household without a baby in his arms had made it real for the rest of the speedster family. Melanie Dawn Allen had ceased to exist.

To try to keep his mind off Melanie, he had focused on school. He had also focused on training. He had questioned his grandpa, Wally, Max and Jay about everything and anything. If he couldn't have Melanie in his life because of Thawne, he was damn well going to be prepared when he met the man again. Eventually, the speedsters had pulled him aside and talked to him. They were worried about him. However, it wasn't their words that impacted his attitude. Instead, it was Tim. Tim, the one they had always worried about becoming too Bat-like, was worried Bart was headed down the same road. Eventually Bart had settled into his life again. And like Selina had predicted, the pain never left, but it became more bearable.

As Bart sat and waited, the sight of any young woman made his heart quicken slightly. Was that her? Or how about her? Eventually his gaze fell on a young woman pushing a stroller. There was something familiar about her. As she got closer, he could see Valerie in her. He could see himself, too. He stood up and nervously wiped his hands on his jeans.

"Melanie?" he asked hesitantly.

She looked at him in surprise. "Mr. Allen?"

He still wasn't used to being called that. Mr. Allen was his grandpa, not him. He smiled and nodded. "Hi."

Melanie appeared flustered. "I'm sorry. I just…I…well, they said you were eighteen when you gave me up. You don't look old enough."

His smile broadened. "I'm older than I look." The benefits of the Speed Force. While Jay and Max had both officially retired – at least until there was some sort of crisis – they still looked as if they were in their late fifties. Barry, too, had semi-retired even though he didn't look much older than forty. Wally had also started to hint at slowing down, noting the world would still be safe with two Flashes – Bart and Irey. Currently, the world was without a Kid Flash, but Bart's middle child had happily taken up the name Impulse. All three of his kids had inherited the metagene. His oldest wasn't interested in the hero business. His youngest…well, the jury was still out. However, the middle child had been begging and pleading to be involved for years. When Bart had finally broken down and allowed it, he wondered what he had done. Suddenly he understood why he and Wally had clashed all those years back when he had been Impulse. The Impulse legacy needed to end.

His eyes took in the young woman standing before him. Shoulder length dark brown hair. Olive complexion. A petite frame. It was her eyes that caught his attention. While they were brown, they were filled with flecks of gold. To ease the tension, he looked at the stroller's occupant. "Who's this?"

Melanie smiled and lifted out the baby. Bart guessed the baby girl to be about three months old. "This is Valerie. She's the reason I decided to meet you. She's your granddaughter." Of everything he had pictured occurring, learning he was a grandpa was definitely not one of the options. But the name…Valerie. He gazed at the baby, speechless. "My mom and dad and my husband encouraged me to meet you. I wasn't sure if I wanted to. I'm still not sure," she admitted. "But they argued you had a right to know you had a granddaughter."

His mind registered the words "mom," "dad" and "husband." Melanie was married. Surprise number two. Tim had obviously kept some facts to himself. "I…I…wow." He grinned. "There are many, many people who would be impressed to know that you made me speechless."

Melanie laughed. "Would you like to hold her?"

Before Bart knew it, a baby – his granddaughter – was in his arms. The memories flooded back. Holding Melanie for the first time. Giving her up. This baby was about the same age Melanie had been when she had first entered his life. "I've done a lot of things. I've faced a lot of challenges, but nothing compared to giving you up. It was the hardest decision I ever made. Looking at you now, I know I made the right one."

Bart sat down on the park bench and looked at the baby. Melanie sat down, too. He could feel her watching him. He could sense the hundreds of questions she wanted to ask. "When you turned eighteen, I waited and waited to receive the call telling me you wanted to meet me. When it didn't come, I was disappointed, but I also sort of understood. Then when this call came…" His voice trailed off.

"My parents never hid the fact that I was adopted," Melanie started. "They were honest about it, but they didn't have much information. They only knew that my mother had died and that my father was unable to care for me. They reassured me that it wasn't because you didn't want me or that you didn't love me, but it still hurt. They always told me that when I turned eighteen, I could meet you. When that day came, I was angry. I love my parents. I didn't want to hurt them. I didn't feel as if you had the right to know anything about me, that if you had really cared about me, you would have found a way to keep me. When I got engaged, my parents again suggested I reach out to you. My fiancé did, too. But I was still angry. I felt as if you had rejected me, so I could reject you. Then I had Valerie. She changed things. I can't imagine giving her up. I can't imagine life without her. That's when I realized what it must have been like for you. My parents told me you raised me for several months, that I was nine, almost ten, months old when they adopted me."

"It wasn't that I couldn't take of you. I could do that. I was doing that. And it wasn't that I didn't love you. I…you were my world. You were one of the best things that had ever happened in my life." He paused, the memories and emotions flooding back. "I gave you up because I couldn't protect you. I couldn't guarantee your safety."

Melanie frowned. "I don't understand."

Before coming to Iowa to meet his daughter, Bart had talked to the speedster family. If he were meeting his daughter, if she were to really know him, to really understand why he had done what he had done, she would need to know who he was. To get a complete picture, she had to know the speedster family, too. Tim had run the background checks. Neither she nor her family had raised any potential security concerns. Taking a deep breath, he met her gaze. "I have a story to tell you, one that requires you to keep an open mind, one that you can share with your parents and husband, but that's it. Once you hear the story, you'll understand why." He paused again. "You know my name is Bart Allen. But what you don't know, what hardly anyone knows, is that I'm the Flash."


End file.
